A RAPID AND SENSITIVE METHOD FOR ESTIMATION OF GALACTOSE IN PARMESAN CHEESE

A simple and specific method using a Dionex carbohydrate analyser was developed for the estimation of galactose in Parmesan cheese. This met hod could also be applied for the determination of other monosaccharid es present in any dairy product which is amenable to aqueous extractio n. Conditions were also established for the removal of proteins and ot her interfering materials from the aqueous extracts by using SCX colum ns. The method is not only highly selective, but also extremely sensit ive, with the detection limit for sugars being in the nmol range. More over, automation of the analytical procedure can be achieved easily by the use of an autosampler which allows analysis of a large number of samples with minimal effort. (C) 1996 Elsevier Science Ltd