Polysaccharide

Sources
Plant: pectin
cellulose
starch
Seed gum (guar gum, locust bean gum) Exudate
gum (arabic, karaya, ghatti, tragacanth)

Animal: chitin

Microbial: xanthan, pullulan, dextran

Seaweed: carrageenan, agar, alginate

Starch

Amylose
Amylopectin
 Cellulose
Monomer: glucose
Bonding: -1,4

Carboxymethyl cellulose
 Pectin
Monomer: D-galacturonic acid, L-rhamnose
Others: D-galactose, D-xylose, D-arabinose (short side chain)
Bonding: -1,4
 GUMS
• Hydrocolloids or hydrophilic colloids
• dissolve or disperse in water
•Natural – seed gums, plant exudates, seaweed gums
• Applications – emulsifying, thickening, gelling, stabilizing, coating agents
• incorporated to improve texture, retention and rehdyration of dehydrated, frozen and
instant convenient foods
• improves qualities of foods like ice creams, gelled desserts, salad dressings, baked
goods, processed cheese
• function as thickeners for gravies and sauces
•Moisture retention agents in baked goods
• emulsion stabilizer in salad dressings
• protective colloids in chocolate milk and syrup
• foam stabilizers in whipped popping and beer
•Clarifying agents for wine and beer
• flavor fixing agents and lubricants
 Seaweed Polysaccharide
• Agar – red algae
• Carrageenan – Irish moss – red algae
• Alginate – brown algae
 AGAR
• Unbranced polysaccharide – hot water
extraction
• Agarose – linear, non-sulfated, mw 120000
• Agaropectin – slightly branched & sulfated,
methyl or pyruvate ketal substituent
• Chemistry – polymer of galactose
• Insoluble in cold water, slightly soluble in
ethanolamine and soluble in formamide and
hot water
 Agarose
Monomer: D-galactose/3,6-anhydro-L-galactose
Bonding: -1,3/-1,4
• USES – enormous ability to absorb water and
form gel at low conc.(0.04%)
• Culture medium for microbiological work
• White & semi translucent – thickener for
soups, jellies, ice cream, desserts
• Clarifying agent in brewing
• Used in confectionery, give desired gel texture
in meat and poultry products, beverages,
moulded foods, cheeses, yoghurt
 ALGINATE
• Derived from brown algae
• Present as a mixed salt (Na, K, Ca, Mg) of alginic acid
• High molecular linear, unbranched polymer of 2 uronic acids –
β-D-mannuronic acid and α –L-guluronic acid
• Uses – gelling, water holding, emulsifying and stabilizing
agent in food industry
• Sodium alginate – antacid
• Propylene glycol alginate – acid stable stabilizer – preserving
head on beers
• Prevents large ice crystal formation in ice cream during storage
• Gel products – cold instant puddings, fruit gels, dessert gels,
onion rings
 Alginate

G, M

Monomer: -mannuronic acid (M)

-L-guluronic acid (G)
Bonding: -1,4/-1,4
 CARRAGEENAN
• Extracted with hot water
• Large highly flexible structures – curl forming
helical structure
• Chemistry – polymer of galactose – β-D-
galactose and 3,6 anhydro-D-galactose – mono
or di sulfates – almost linear with one unit
branching
 Carrageenan
Monomer: D-galactose (anhydro/sulfate)
Bonding: -1,4/-1,3
 TYPES OF CARRAGEENAN

Kappa –
strong rigid
gels

Iota-soft
gels

Lambda-
form gel
with protein
– thicken
dairy
products
 Uses of carrageenan
• Used in preparation of salad dressings, sauces, dietetic
foods
• Used as a preservative in meat and fish products, dairy
items and baked goods
• In dairy products – form stabilizing complexes with milk
proteins and suspended cocoa powder in milk and give
more acceptable texture to processed cheese and cream
• Desserts, icecreams, milk shakes – to increase viscosity
• Beer – clarifier to remove haze causing proteins
• Processed meat – substitute fat to increase water
retention and increase volume
 SEED GUMS
Galactomannans - extracted by processing
endosperm of seeds

b-(14) mannose (M) backbone with a-
(16) galactose (G) side chains
• Ratio of M to G depends on source
– M:G=1:1 - fenugreek gum
– M:G=2:1 - guar gum (E412)
– M:G=3:1 - tara gum
– M:G=4:1 - locust bean gum (E410)
 Guar gum - obtained from endosperm of Cyamopsis tetragonolobus

Locust bean gum - obtained from seeds of carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua)
from: http://www.sbu.ac.uk/water/hydro.html)
Durian seed gum – contained L-rhamnose, glucose
and D-galactose – 3:9:1 and not galactomannan

Ipomoea digitata plant seed gum – similar st. and

properties of guar gum and locust bean gum
 Guar gum
• Non-ionic, free flowing, low pale white coloured,
coarse to fine powder, water soluble polysaccharide
• Uses – thickener & emulsifier in commercial food
processing
• Has 8 times thickening power as corn starch
• Used in dressings, sauces, milk products & baking
mixes
• Used in paper manufacturing, textiles, printing,
cosmetics & pharmaceutical
 Guar gum
Monomer: galactose, mannose (galactomannan)
Bonding: -1,6/-1,4
 Locust bean gum
• Structure – irregular – long stretch of 80 D-
mannose alternate with 50 units in which
almost every unit attached to D-galactose
• 85% used in dairy & frozen desserts and in
combination with other gums as CMC,
carrageenan, xanthan and guar gum
• Use level – 0.05 – 0.25%
 Seed Gum

Locust bean gum

Monomer: galactose, mannose (galactomannan)
Bonding: -1,4/-1,6 (branch)
 Pullulan 
• polysaccharide polymer consisting of maltotriose units, also
known as α-1,4- ;α-1,6-glucan
•Three glucose units in maltotriose are connected by an α-1,4 
glycosidic bond, whereas consecutive maltotriose units are
connected to each other by an α-1,6 glycosidic bond.
•produced from starch by the fungus Aureobasidium pullulans
 Xanthan
Monomer: backbone glucose (as cellulose)
side chain mannose/glucuronic acid
Bonding: -1,4/-1,2/-1,3
Produced by Xanthomonas compestric
 Dextran
• α-D-1,6-glucose-linked glucan with side-chains 1-3 linked to the
backbone
• The degree of branching is approximately 5%.
• The branches are mostly 1-2 glucose units long.
• Obtained from fermentation of sucrose-containing media by
Leuconostoc mesenteroides B512F.
 Plant exudate

Gum karaya

Gum ghatti

Gum Tragacanth

Gum arabic
 Gum arabic/acacia gum/meska

When the bark of some trees and shrubs is injured, the plants exude a sticky material that
hardens to seal the wound and give protection from infection and desiccation. Such
exudates are commonly found on plants that grow in semiarid climates.
Gum arabic
Gum arabic

31
 Gums
Gum arabic
• One of the oldest known gums, from the bark
of Acacia trees – Nigeria and Sudan
– Very large complex polymer
• Up to 3.500 KDalton (varies greatly with source)
• Galactose & Glucuronic acid form main building blocks
• Rhamnose and arabinose in minor amounts
– Very expensive compared to other gums but has
unique properties

32
 Gum arabic
• Highly branched with b-Galactose backbone
• Molecular weight 2,50,000 – 7,50,000
• Water soluble, fat insoluble but affinity for fat
• Low viscosity gum
• Viscosity affected by pH and salts

• Food uses:
– Stabilizer for flavor emulsions
– Encapsulated flavors
– Water binding
– Inhibit sugar crystallization
•
Gums
Characteristics of Gum arabic
– Readily dissolves in water
• Colorless and tasteless solutions of relatively low viscosity
• Can go up to 50% w/w
– Can manipulate solution viscosity of Gum arabic by changing pH
• Low or high pH = viscosity is reduced
• pH 6-8 = higher viscosity is maintained

34
 -complex heteropolysaccharide
-low viscosity
Gum arabic
Glucuronic acid and galactose main building blocks
Rhamnose and arabinose in minor amounts

3
1

4
2

Composition: 1. D-galactose, 44%; 2. L-arabinose, 24%;

3. D-glucuronic acid,14.5% ; 4. L-rhamnose, 13%;
5. 4-O-methyl-D-glucuronic acid, 1.5%.
They contain main chains of (1 - 3)-linked b-D-galactopyranosyl units having two- to four-
unit side chains consisting of (1 - 3)-b-D-galactopyranosyl units joined to it by (1-6)
linkages.

Both the main chain and the numerous side chains have attached α-L-arabinofuranosyl, α
-L-rhamnopyranosyl, β-D-glucuronopyranosyl, and 4-O-methyl-b-D-glucuronopyranosyl
units.
The two uronic acid units occur most often as ends of chains.
Gums: Applications of Gum arabic
– Gum candy and pastilles (A medicated lozenge used to soothe the throat)
• Retards sugar crystallization
• Functions as a Coating agent and a binder
• Its functions in confections are to prevent sucrose crystallization and to emulsify and
distribute fatty components.

– Ice cream and sherbets (A frozen dessert made primarily of fruit juice and sugar, but also containing
milk, egg-white or gelatin)
• induces and maintains small ice crystals
– Beverages
• foam and emulsion stabilizer
• used in beverage powders (e.g. citrus drink mixes) to maintain and stabilize flavor
(encapsulates flavors)
– Bakery and snack products
• Lubricant and binder
• The soft drink industry consumes about 30% of the gum supply as an emulsifier and
stabilizer

37
 Applications of Gum arabic
* It is an important ingredient in soft drink syrups, "hard" gummy
candies such as gumdrops, marshmallows, chocolate candies and
edible glitter, a very popular, modern cake-decorating staple.

* For artists, it is the traditional binder used in watercolor paint, in

photography for gum printing, & it is used as a binder in 
pyrotechnic compositions. It has been investigated for use in 
intestinal dialysis. 

* Pharmaceuticals and cosmetics also use the gum as a binder,

emulsifying agent and a suspending or viscosity increasing agent.
 Applications of Gum arabic
• Meska is used primarily in the food industry as a 
stabilizer.
• Meska is a key ingredient in traditional 
lithography and is used in printing, paint
production, glue, cosmetics and various industrial
applications, including viscosity control in inks
 and in textile industries, although less expensive
materials compete with it for many of these roles.

Lithography -The process of printing from a surface on which the printing

areas are not raised but are ink-receptive (as opposed to ink repellent)
 Uses of Meska

Powdered Meska for artists, one part

A selection of gouaches 
Meska is dissolved in four parts distilled
containing Meska
water to make a liquid suitable for
adding to pigments.
 Gum ghatti
• complex polysaccharide of high molecular weight.
• occurs as a mixed calcium, magnesium,
potassium and sodium salt. Complete hydrolysis
has shown that it is composed of L-arabinose, D-
galactose, D-mannose, D-xylose and D-glucoronic
acid in a molar ratio of 10:6:2:1:2 plus traces less
than 1% of 6-deoxyhexose.
• Anogeissus latifolia
Gum ghatti
 Gum Tragacanth
• Obtained from dried sap of several species
of Middle Eastern legumes -Astragalus sp.
• Also called shiraz gum, shiraz, gum elect or
gum dragon
• Two components –
– Tragacanthic acid (soluble) – polygalacturonic acid,
Fucose, glucose, xylose
– Bassorin (insoluble, swelling)
Gum Tragacanth
 Karaya gum
• Sterculia sp.
• Indian Tragacanth
• D-galactose, D-galacturonic acid, L-Glucuronic acid
• Consist of 3 main chains – polymer of different
disaccharide units
• Main chain covalently linked to side chains
• Strong cross linkage – insoluble in water and resistant to
enzymes & microorganisms
• Swells greatly in water
• Pasting consistency at >3% conc.
Karaya gum
applications
• Water binder – soft cheese
• Binding agent – meat products, sausages
• Stabilizer of protein foam – beer, whipped
cream
• Thickener- soups, sauces, salad dressings,
ketchups, mayonnaise
• Prevents syneresis of gels & provides body
Relative Sweetness of Some Carbohydrate and Artificial Sweeteners:

• Although all monosaccharides are sweet to the taste, some are sweeter than others
(Table 4). D-Fructose tastes the sweetest, even sweeter than sucrose. The sweet
taste of honey is attributable largely to D-fructose and D-glucose. Lactose has
almost no sweetness. It occurs in many milk products and is sometimes added to
foods as a filler. Some people lack an enzyme that allows them to tolerate lactose
well; they should avoid these foods.
• The sweetening power of sugars is undoubtedly their most important characteristic,
insofar as the public is concerned. If the sweetness of sucrose is taken as a standard,
then other sweet tasting compounds may be ranked accordingly, as shown here.
Saccharin and aspartame are synthetic sweeteners, their structures are shown on the
right. The other compounds are natural sugars.

O
O

N Na
O2C N COOCH3
S H
O NH3
O
Sacchrin Aspartame
Table 4: Relative Sweetness of Some Carbohydrates and Artificial Sweetening
Agents:

Sweetness Artificial Sweetness

Relative to Sweetener Relative Carbohydrate
Sucrose to Sucrose

450 Saccharin 1.74 Fructose

160 Aspartame 1.25 Invert sugar
1.00 Sucrose (table sugar)

0.97 Honey

0.74 Glucose

0.33 Maltose

0.32 Galactose

0.16 Lactose (milk sugar)