title: Sulfated galactans from Australian specimens of the red alga Phacelocarpus peperocarpos (Gigartinales, Rhodophyta).
abstract: Polysaccharides from the red alga Phacelocarpus peperocarpos were extracted with hot water, clarified, and precipitated with 2-propanol. The native preparation was highly sulfated (36.2% w/w). Alkali modification decreased the sulfate content by 2.0% w/w. The alkali-modified polysaccharide is composed mostly of galactose (Gal. 51 mol%) and 3,6-anhydrogalactose (AnGal, 41 mol%), with minor amounts of a mono-O-methylgalactose (MeGal, 1 mol%), xylose (Xyl, 6 mol%), and glucose (Glc, 1 mol%). The FTIR spectrum of the alkali-modified polysaccharide resembled kappa-carrageenan with absorption at 930 cm-1 (indicative of AnGal) and 850 cm-1 (Gal 4-sulfate). However, an additional, major band of absorption occurred sulfate ester substitution at O-6 of at 820 cm-1, indicating the presence of equatorial sulfate ester substitution at O-6 of Gal residues. A combination of linkage and 13C NMR spectroscopic analyses showed that the polysaccharide was composed predominantly of a novel repeating-unit, O-beta-D-galactopyranosyl 4,6-disulfate)-(1-->4)-3,6-anhydro-alpha-D-galactopyranose. Minor structural variations also occurred, including alternative patterns of sulfation and the presence of terminal Xylp. The location of the terminal Xylp residues was not certain but evidence supported their attachment at O-3 of some 4-linked Galp residues. The cell-wall galactans remain unchanged during the life cycle of the alga.
authors.affiliation: CRC for Industrial Plant Biopolymers, School of Botany, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Vic., Australia.
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Liao
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chiovitti
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Munro
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Craik
authors.forename: G T
authors.initials: GT
authors.lastname: Kraft
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bacic
mesh_terms: D001315:Australia; D002236:Carbohydrate Conformation; D004187:Disaccharides / Q000737:chemistry; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000737:chemistry*; D005685:Galactans / Q000737:chemistry*; D005690:Galactose / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000032:analysis; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D011134:Polysaccharides / Q000737:chemistry; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D004187:Disaccharides; D005685:Galactans; D011134:Polysaccharides; D013463:Sulfuric Acid Esters; D005690:Galactose