Synthesis and characterization of a new Inonotus obliquus polysaccharide-iron(III) complex

Area of Science:

• Biochemistry
• Materials Science
• Pharmacology

Background:

• Iron deficiency anemia remains a significant global health concern.
• Polysaccharides from natural sources offer potential for developing novel iron delivery systems.
• Inonotus obliquus (IOPS) is a medicinal mushroom with known bioactive compounds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize a new Inonotus obliquus polysaccharide-iron(III) complex (IOPS-iron).
• To optimize the preparation conditions for the IOPS-iron complex.
• To evaluate the physicochemical properties, digestive availability, and antioxidant activities of the synthesized complex.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of IOPS-iron(III) complex.
• Optimization of reaction parameters including IOPS to FeCl3 ratio, pH, temperature, and time.
• Characterization using physicochemical methods, SEM, EPR, FTIR, CD, and NMR spectroscopy.
• In vitro assays for digestive availability and antioxidant activity.

Main Results:

• The optimal conditions yielded an IOPS-iron(III) complex with 19.40% iron content.
• Characterization confirmed iron(III) binding to polysaccharide sites and formation of spatially separated iron centers.
• The complex demonstrated good digestive availability and significant antioxidant activities in vitro.

Conclusions:

• A novel IOPS-iron(III) complex was successfully synthesized and characterized.
• The optimized complex exhibits favorable properties for iron delivery.
• IOPS-iron(III) holds potential as a new candidate for iron supplementation therapies.