M. Martinez et al., CHEMICAL AND SPECTROSCOPIC STUDIES OF THE GUM POLYSACCHARIDE FROM ACACIA-MACRACANTHA, Carbohydrate polymers, 29(3), 1996, pp. 247-252
The polysaccharide isolated from Acacia macracantha gum, a Venezuelan
Gummiferae spp., contains galactose, arabinose, rhamnose, glucuronic a
cid and its 4-O-methyl analogue. C-13-NMR spectroscopy, in combination
with chemical methods, was applied in this study. A complex fragment,
constituted of galactose, arabinose and glucuronic acid (3:2:1), was
obtained from the original polysaccharide and its degradation products
. This fragment appears to be an important structural feature of the g
um. The backbone of the structure (degraded gum B) is a beta-(1 --> 3)
galactan, although glucuronic acid and arabinose residues are still p
resent in the core of the structure. Stereochemistry of the molecule m
ay work against periodate oxidation of these sugar residues. Arabinose
may be present as internal residues and as short side-chains while gl
ucuronic acid exists mainly as a terminal residue. Copyright (C) 1996
Published by Elsevier Science Limited.