State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Resources, China-Canada Joint Lab of Food Science and Technology (Nanchang), Nanchang University, Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, China.
Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf. 2023 Nov;22(6):4831-4870. doi: 10.1111/1541-4337.13244. Epub 2023 Sep 26.
Polysaccharides are promising biomolecules with lowtoxicity and diverse bioactivities in food processing and clinical drug development. However, an essential prerequisite for their applications is the fine structure characterization. Due to the complexity of polysaccharide structure, partial degradation is a powerful tool for fine structure analysis, which can effectively provide valid information on the structure of backbone and branching glycosidic fragments of complex polysaccharides. This review aims to conclude current methods of partial degradation employed for polysaccharide structural characterization, discuss the molecular mechanisms, and describe the molecular structure and solution properties of degraded polysaccharides. In addition, the effects of polysaccharide degradation on the conformational relationships between the molecular structure and bioactivities, such as antioxidant, antitumor, and immunomodulatory activities, are also discussed. Finally, we summarize the prospects and current challenges for the partial degradation of polysaccharides. This review will be of great value for the scientific elucidation of polysaccharide fine structures and potential applications.
多糖是一种很有前途的生物分子，在食品加工和临床药物开发中具有低毒性和多种生物活性。然而，其应用的一个基本前提是精细结构的表征。由于多糖结构的复杂性，部分降解是精细结构分析的有力工具，它可以有效地为复杂多糖的骨架和支链糖苷片段的结构提供有效信息。本综述旨在总结用于多糖结构特征描述的部分降解方法，讨论其分子机制，并描述降解多糖的分子结构和溶液性质。此外，还讨论了多糖降解对分子结构与生物活性（如抗氧化、抗肿瘤和免疫调节活性）之间构象关系的影响。最后，我们总结了多糖部分降解的前景和当前挑战。本综述对于阐明多糖的精细结构及其潜在应用具有重要意义。
