The Quantification of (1,3)-β-Glucan in Edible and Medicinal Mushroom Polysaccharides by Using Limulus G Test

Abstract

(1, 3))-β-glucan is a core structure in mushroom polysaccharide, which claim to posses anticancerous and immunomodulatory properties. The ability to identify (1, 3)--glucan in mushroom polysaccharide not only provide useful information on the structural composition of the mushroom polysaccharide, but facilitate us to identify the potential anticancerous and immunomodulatory active compounds. Using limulus factor G test, we detected (1, 3)--glucan in 27 polysaccharides extracted from 19 edible or medicinal mushrooms species. The result show that (1, 3)--glucan exists in all mushroom polysaccharide extracts but its content varies extremely depends on the mushroom species or the part of mushroom and the degree of purification. Our data show the mean of (1, 3)--glucan in these mushroom polysaccharides is 34.8%. Nine mushroom polysaccharide extracts from Lentinus edodes, Schizophyllum commune, Coriolus versicolor, Volvariella volvacea, Coprinus comatus, Grifola frondosa, Lyophyllum shimeji have superior (1, 3)--glucan contents than the others. Our study demonstrates that limulus Factor G test is a quick and convenient method for detecting (1, 3)--glucan content in crude mushroom polysaccharide extracts.