Recent developments in the biosynthesis and applications of heteropolysaccharides from lactic acid bacteria

Exopolysaccharides of Lactic Acid Bacteria for Food and Colon Health Applications

“…LAB strains can utilize various monosaccharides and disaccharides as energy sources, via some well-studied sugar uptake systems include primary transport systems, direct coupling of sugar translocation to ATP hydrolysis via a transport-specific ATPase; secondary sugar transport systems, coupling of sugar transport to the transport of ions or other solutes, both as symport and antiport transport systems; and group translocation systems, coupling of sugar transport to phosphorylation via the phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP)-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS; Fig. 2) [8]. Polysaccharides must be hydrolyzed before uptake.…”

“…The instability of hetero-EPS production has been reviewed by de Vuyst et al [8]. Briefly, a loss in the ability to produce slime may be caused by repeated subculture of bacterial strains or incubation at high temperatures.…”

“…The biosynthesis of homo-EPS and hetero-EPS are different. Homo-EPS are made from sucrose using glucansucrase or levansucrase [6][7], and the synthesis of hetero-EPS involves four major steps, sugar transportation, sugar nucleotide synthesis, repeating unit synthesis, and polymerization of the repeating units [8]. The major physiological function of EPS is believed to be biological defenses against various stresses such as phage attack, toxic metal ions, and desiccation [9], and it is very unlikely that bacteria use EPS as an energy source.…”

Molecular characterization of an exopolysaccharide from a probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum MTCC 9510 and its efficacy to improve the texture of starchy food

“…The major sugar units in exopolysaccharides are glucose, mannose, galactose and rhamnose in different ratio (DeVuyst et al 2001). The demand for natural polymers for various industrial applications has led to an increased attention towards exopolysaccharides.…”

Binding Interactions Between α-glucans from Lactobacillus reuteri and Milk Proteins Characterised by Surface Plasmon Resonance

“…galactose, glucose, rhamnose, etc., and homopolysaccharides (HoPS) solely contain glucose (α-glucans) or fructose (fructans). 3 HePS are formed by LAB commonly applied in yoghurt production and responsible for the desired milk texture despite their rather modest concentration of up to 2.4 gL -1 4 and often below 0.6 gL -1 5 . By contrast HoPS were reported to be produced in considerably larger amounts up to 40 gL -1 .…”