Immunogenic Extracellular Polysaccharides of Mucorales

Influence of culture period on the allergenic composition of Pityrosporum orbiculare extracts

“…Another question regarding the nature of the HMW allergens of P. orhiculare concerns the possible relationship with extracellular polysaccharides (EPS) of moulds, which are stable polymeric carbohydrates of variable composition, produced and secreted during in vitro culture of many mould species [25], EPS are highly antigenic in rabbits, and recent studies have identified 2-o-methyl-mannosidc residues as important epitopes [26]. Anti-EPS IgG can also be found in many human sera [27], but to our knowledge no data have been reported showing a role for EPS as IgE-binding allergens in, e.g.…”

Formation of antigenic extracellular polysaccharides by selected strains ofMucor spp.,Rhizopus spp.,Rhizomucor spp.,Absidia corymbifera andSyncephalastrum racemosum

“…As the sugar constituents of the EPS were found to be immunodominant (Miyazaki et al 1980;De Ruiter et al 1991b), the ratio between the amounts of EPS and of biomass of the moulds was calculated based on the total sugar content of the EPS. As shown in Table 2, production of EPS of M. hiemalis occurred at all glucose concentrations tested.…”

“…The extracellular polymers of Mucorales (Zygomycetes) mainly consist of carbohydrates (50 to 90%) and protein (10 to 50%) and are therefore often referred to as extracellular polymers or polysaccharides (EPS). The presence of fucose, galactose, mannose and glucose residues has been established (Martin & Adams 1956;Bartnicki-Garcia & Reyes 1968;De Ruiter et al 1991a, 1991b. Also, 13-D-(1-4)-linked glucuronic acid polymers have been described as an important structural entity of these EPS (De Ruiter et al 1992a).…”

“…In addition, it must be established that the target fungi produce the antigenic compound when growing on various saccharides occurring in foods. For quantitative purposes the antigenic activity per unit biomass must be predictable (De Ruiter et al 1991b).…”

Structural differences between the alkali-extracted water-soluble cell wall polysaccharides from mycelial and yeast phases of the pathogenic dimorphic fungus Paracoccidioides brasiliensis

“…They differ in composition and structure among genera and, in certain cases, among species within a genus (Leal et al, 2001). These polysaccharides are antigenically relevant (Ahrazem et al, 2000a;Domenech et al, 1996Domenech et al, , 1999Mischnick and De Ruiter, 1994;Latge  et al, 1991;De Ruiter et al, 1991) and are probably involved in cell±cell and/or cell±host recognition mechanisms.…”