title: Facile preparation of highly crystalline lamellae of (1 → 3)-β-D-glucan using an extract of Euglena gracilis.
abstract: In vitro synthesis of (1 → 3)-β-D-glucan was performed using laminaribiose phosphorylase obtained by an extraction of Euglena gracilis with sucrose phosphorylase. The synthetic product was a linear (1 → 3)-β-D-glucan with a narrow distribution of degree of polymerization (DP) centered on DP=30. X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy revealed that the glucan molecules obtained were self-organized as highly crystalline hexagonal lamellae. This synthetic product has quite high structural homogeneity at every level from primary to higher-order structure, which is a great advantage for the detailed analyses of physiological functions of (1 → 3)-β-D-glucan.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomaterials Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Japan.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ogawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomaterials Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuhiro
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Noda
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomaterials Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Department of Plant & Environmental New Resources, College of Life Sciences, Kyung Hee University, 1, Seocheon-dong, Giheung-ku, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-701, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Satoshi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kimura
authors.affiliation: National Food Research Institute, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization, 2-1-2 Kannondai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305, Japan.
authors.forename: Motomitsu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kitaoka
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomaterials Science, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Department of Plant & Environmental New Resources, College of Life Sciences, Kyung Hee University, 1, Seocheon-dong, Giheung-ku, Yongin-si, Gyeonggi-do 446-701, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: awadam@mail.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
authors.forename: Masahisa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wada
mesh_terms: D005056:Euglena gracilis / Q000737:chemistry*; D005964:Glucosyltransferases / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D011509:Proteoglycans; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction; D047071:beta-Glucans / Q000138:chemical synthesis*
chemical_list: D011509:Proteoglycans; D047071:beta-Glucans; C010770:polysaccharide-K; D005964:Glucosyltransferases; C082478:laminaribiose phosphorylase
keywords: (1→3)-β-d-Glucan; In vitro synthesis; Laminaribiose phosphorylase