The Structure of the Polysaccharides Produced by Higher Basidiomyces Tremella mesenterica Ritz.: Fr. and Inonotus levis P. Karst.

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Polysaccharides are the best known and most potent mushroom-derived substances, with various positive health eff ects including immunostimulation, lowering glucose level in blood, anticancer activity, and many others. Biologically active polysaccharides are widerspread among higher Basidiomycetes mushrooms, and most of them have unique structures in diff erent species. Th ere is still no clear correlation between biological activity and structural features of the polysaccharides. Th is situation results in part from poor knowledge of polysaccharide structures. Herein, we present the results from analyzing two polymers of Tremella mesenterica and Inonotus levis. Tremella mesenterica (Yellow Brain mushroom) possesses a wide spectrum of medicinal properties, including immunostimulating, protecting against radiation, antidiabetic, anti-infl ammatory, hypocholesterolemic, hepatoprotective, and antiallergic eff ects. Glucuronoxylomannan (GXM), an extracellular polysaccharide produced by single cell culture of T. mesenterica, has a number of benefi cial health eff ects. We developed a new strain of T. mesenterica, CBS 101939, which grows in submerged culture and off ers superior yields of one-cell biomass rich in exocellular heteropolysaccharide GXM. NMR and chemical analysis showed that it has a defi ned structure of repeating unit, which is O-acetylated at several points, stoichometrically at O-6 of two mannose residues, and partially at GlcA residue, which is present in non-acetylated or acetylated at positions 3 or 4 forms (see Fig. 1). Th ese results diff er from existing data on the structures of mushroom mannan-based poly sac charides, where mannan backbone was believed to be