Comparative studies on characterization, saccharide mapping and antiglycation activity of polysaccharides from different Polygonatum ssp.

• Polysaccharides from nine species of Polygonatum were firstly compared. • Enzymatic digestion followed by HPGPC saccharide mapping were used. • Polysaccharides from most Polygonatum spp. consisted of pectins and fructans. • Polysaccharides from P. macropodium were mainly composed of fructans. • Both pectins and fructans were related to antiglycation activity. Multiple species of Polygonatum are used as "Huangjing" in China and polysaccharides are the main effective constituents of "Huangjing". However, there is a lack of systematic comparison of polysaccharides from Polygonatum spp., and little work concerning on the polysaccharides from unofficial species. This paper conducted a comparison study on the characterization, high-performance gel permeation chromatography (HPGPC) saccharide mapping and antiglycation assay of polysaccharides and their enzymatic hydrolysates from nine species of Polygonatum. The results showed that polysaccharides from P. macropodium were mainly composed of fructans (3.3 × 103 Da); while polysaccharides from other eight Polygonatum spp. contained both fructans (2.5 × 103-4.1 × 103 Da) and pectins (more than 4.1 × 105 Da). Antiglycation assay showed that polysaccharides from Polygonatum spp. could significantly inhibit the formation of AGEs, and degradation of pectins and fructans could result in loss of activity. The results are helpful to the rational usage and quality control of Polygonatum spp. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]