A facile method for the synthesis of partially O-methylated alditol acetate standards for GC-MS analysis of galactofuranose-containing structures.

Mixtures of partially O-methylated alditol acetate standards of galactofuranose were synthesized rapidly. Methyl galactofuranosides were obtained with a yield of 79.9% within 4h under optimized reaction conditions. Methylation of methyl glycosides was carried out in the presence of BaO/Ba(OH)2·8H2O, giving rise to mixtures of partially methylated glycosides. The batch containing the most diverse structures of methyl ethers was converted into partially O-methylated alditol acetates (PMAAs) and then subjected to GC-MS. These PMAAs could be used as GC-MS standards for simultaneous identification of galactofuranose units with diverse linkages in complex carbohydrates.