Structure and properties of a (1→3)-β-d-glucan from ultrasound-degraded exopolysaccharides of a medicinal fungus

A high molecular weight (MW) exopolysaccaride (EPS) fraction EPS1 was isolated from the fermentation broth of a medicinal fungus Cordyceps sinensis Cs-HK1 and partially degraded by high-intensity ultrasound (US) into a lower MW fraction EPS1U. EPS1U exhibited a single, symmetric peak on size exclusion chromatography with an average MW of 730 kDa by light scattering analysis. It had a much lower intrinsic viscosity (1.7 versus 15.6 dL/g) but a...