| Abstract: | The negative ion fast atom bombardment (NIFAB) mass spectra of mono-, di-saccharides and glycosides using phenylboronic acid (PBA) as reagent have been studied. In the ion source, PBA reacts stereospecifically with the molecules containing cis-vicinal glycols to form characteristic ions, from which the stereo-isomers of saccharides can be definitely distinguished. Disaccharides and glycosides with β-glycosidic linkage seem to be unfavorabale to react with PBA, therefore, by comparison of the abundances of the characteristic ions, the configuration of the glycosidic linkage in these compounds may be inferred. |
