ISSN print edition: 0366-6352 ISSN electronic edition: 1336-9075 Registr. No.: MK SR 9/7 Published monthly

Isolation and Characterization of Mitogenic Pectic Polysaccharides from Cistanche deserticola Y. C. Ma.

A. Ebringerová, Z. Hromádková, E. Machová, R. Naran, and V. Hříbalová

Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, SK-842 38 Bratislava

Abstract: Three pectic polysaccharide fractions isolated from the methanol-and water-insoluble cell-wall material of the Cistanche deserticola drug by fractional extraction have been investigated using chemical, enzymic, and NMR spectroscopic methods. The pectins differed in the galacturonic acid content which varied between 30 % and 80 %, degree of methyl esterification and acetylation, composition of the neutral carbohydrate components, and molecular properties. They contained homogalacturonan and rhamnogalacturonan RG-I sequences in different proportions, and neutral polysaccharides represented mainly by a highly branched (1→3,5)-α-arabinan. All pectin fractions exhibited immunomodulating properties as indicated by their significant activities in mitogenic and comitogenic tests.

Full paper in Portable Document Format: 515a289.pdf

Chemical Papers 51 (5) 289–294 (1997)