Analysis and prospect of correlation between relative molecular weight and efficacy of polysaccharides from medicinal plant resources
Polysaccharides from medicinal plant resources are a kind of polymers extracted from medicinal plants.They are com-plex long chains formed by different monosaccharides connected via glucosidic bonds.These polysaccharides usually have straight chain and branched chain structures,and their relative molecular weight changes greatly.Modern studies have shown that the biological activi-ty of polysaccharides from medicinal plant resources is closely related to their relative molecular weight.This paper first reviewed the preparation and detection methods of polysaccharides from medicinal plant resources with different relative molecular weights.Then,the paper summarized and analyzed the general experience of the correlation between efficacy and relative molecular weight of polysac-charides from medicinal plant resources with different molecular weights.It was considered that polysaccharides with large relative mo-lecular weights(>100 kDa)play a leading role in immune regulation.Polysaccharides with medium relative molecular weights(10-100 kDa)play a leading role in immune regulation and the protection of the liver.Polysaccharides with small relative molecular weights(<10 kDa)play a leading role in anti-oxidation,regulation of intestinal flora,regulation of blood glucose and lipids,anti-fatigue,and the protection of nerves.Therefore,precise development of polysaccharides from medicinal plant resources based on relative molecular weight is expected to improve their biological activity and application value.