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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Determination of Glucan Chain Length Distribution of Glycogen Using the Fluorophore-Assisted Carbohydrate Electrophoresis (FACE) Method
Published on: March 31, 2022
Controlled stability of the triple-stranded helical structure of a beta-1,3-glucan with a chromophoric aromatic
Masato Ikeda1, Shuichi Haraguchi, Munenori Numata
1Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyushu University, Fukuoka 819-0395, Japan.
Abstract:
We synthesized a semiartificial beta-1,3-glucan, curdlan with dialkylaniline groups (CUR-DA), that bears chromophoric aromatic groups at its peripheral positions. Spectroscopic studies as well as microscopic observations indicate that CUR-DA adopts a triple-stranded helical structure in water- or methanol-rich solutions of dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). This triple-stranded helical structure exhibits high thermal stability and resistance to base, attributes that are similar to those of the triple-stranded helical structure of native beta-1,3-glucans such as schizophyllan. Moreover, we found that the stability of the triple-stranded helical structure can be easily modulated by solvent composition and metal-ion (Zn2+) binding. As beta-1,3-glucan polysaccharides are known to serve as "polymeric" hosts, including certain DNA molecules, carbon nanotubes, and conjugated polymers, and complexation occurs only with the single-stranded structure, this information is very useful for the creation of these attractive polymeric composites, the controlled release of DNA, and so on.
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