Characterisation of the extracellular polysaccharides produced by isolates of the fungus Acremonium

Abstract Solid state 13 C NMR studies of the extracellular glucans from the fungi Acremonium persicinum C38 (QM107a) and Acremonium sp. strain C106 indicated a backbone of (1→3)-β-linked glucosyl residues with single (1→6)-β-linked glucosyl side branches for both glucans. Analyses of enzymatic digestion products suggested that the average branching frequency for the A. persicinum glucan (66.7% branched) was much higher than that of the Acremonium sp. strain C106 glucan (28.6% branched). The solid state 13 C NMR spectra also indicated that both glucans are amorphous polymers with no crystalline regions, and the individual chains are probably arranged as triple helices.