STRUCTURAL STUDIES OF AN ACIDIC POLYSACCHARIDE FROM OCIMUM-BASILICUM SEEDS

An acidic polysaccharide isolated from the seeds of Ocimum basilicum by DEAE-cellulose fractionation was ∼92% pure, having an associated glucan impurity (∼8%). The polysaccharide is composed of d-xylose, l-arabinose, l-rhamnose, and d-galacturonic acid in the molar ratios 15:9:7:12, together with traces or galactose and glucose. Methylation analysis indicated that the polysaccharide contained a (1→4)-linked xylan backbone carrying branch-points at C-2 and C-3 of the xylosyl residues, and revealed the structural features of the side chains. Periodateoxidation and Smith-degradation studies support the results of methylation analysis. © 1979.