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More than just 'empty' calories: polysaccharides in food
Oligosaccharides and low-molecular polysaccharides are polymers made of different sugar
units. Specialist companies such as Esslingen-based Anoxymer GmbH are focusing on plant
sugar structures that have a therapeutic and preventive benefit.
The sight of sweets can make our mouth water; human tongues and palates enjoy sweet
things. There is a good reason why our senses react so positively to sweet food: polysaccharides
are not only an effective fuel for our metabolism, but, depending on their molecular structure,
might also have a health benefit. Esslingen-based Anoxymer GmbH develops plant extracts
containing bioactive oligo- and polysaccharides. These extracts are used in food and food
additives to boost healing processes and prevention.
Dr. Dietrich Paper is head of R&D at Anoxymer. (Photo: Anoxymer GmbH)
Initially, a suitable plant species has to be found that contains sufficient amounts of the desired
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substance. Then, the saccharides have to be enriched and/or modified so as to have a defined
benefit. Dr. Dietrich Paper is head of R&D at Anoxymer and explains the benefit of certain
sugar structures in counteracting harmful oxidation processes in the body: “Antioxidative
oligosaccharides have slightly different action mechanisms; these differences depend on chain
length and the way the monosaccharides are interconnected. Very small alterations in the
molecular structure might change the saccharides’ effect.” Paper and his team have started
looking for optimal sugar structures for specific effects and producing them on an industrial
scale using elaborate production processes.
Small structural changes – big effect
The company team has already achieved a breakthrough with Anoxymins®. The company
developed a method for obtaining extracts from plants such as lemon-scented verbena and
turning them into standardized products consisting of the bioactive oligosaccharide Anoxymin.
Like vitamin C, Anoxymins have a radical scavenging activity. Free radicals are very reactive
and often lead to oxidative stress. “But Anoxymins can do a lot more. For example, they are
able to inhibit enzymes such as xanthinoxidase that contribute to the formation of radicals. In
addition, Anoxymins also lead to the reduction of transcription factors such as AP1 and NF
Kappa B, which play a major role in inflammatory processes,” explains Paper.
The process does not stop with the production of primary plant extracts that contain the
sought-after active substances. The substances then have to be adapted to the final product to
which they will be added. Anoxymer GmbH also possesses the specific know-how for such a
process. “It makes a difference whether an extract with a defined effect is added to a beverage
or dough. If the product contains fat, then the extract has to be modified accordingly,” affirms
Paper. Finally, comprehensive analyses show whether the final product has the sought-after
effect and whether the oligosaccharide remains chemically and physically stable.
As an innovative company, Anoxymer does not intend to rest on the laurels gained by the
success with the Anoxymins. The company’s researchers are also looking at galactans, lowmolecular polysaccharides consisting of galactose (glucose stereoisomer). Paper believes that
the galactans have huge potential in the defense against bacteria in the intestines. The
intestinal walls are coated with endothelial cells that carry adhesion molecules on their surface.
Structures of the bacterial cell envelope might dock to the adhesion molecules and induce an
infection. When contained in food, it is assumed that these galactans prevent this initial
docking step by occupying the bacteria’s potential docking sites.
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Anoxymer GmbH produces algal polysaccharides such as carrageenans from red algae (Chondrus). (Photo: Anoxymer
GmbH)
The extracts must be adapted to the final product
Fucus species are also suitable as suppliers of algal polysaccharides. (Photo: Anoxymer GmbH)
Preventing infections with galactans and carrageenans
“We are hoping to produce relatively small galactans with a molecular weight of below 10,000,
which do not usually occur in the food we eat. We are able to isolate them from carrot and
algae extracts with an optimised degradation process (heating),” said Paper who also uses
specific algal extracts to isolate carrageenans, a family of linear sulphated polysaccharides.
Carrageenans are found in the cell wall of brown and red algae. It is assumed that they also
have an anti-inflammatory effect in that they inhibit the aforementioned adhesion
mechanisms. “Not all algal species possess carrageenans; at present, we are mainly interested
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in the red algae Chondrus crispus,” said Paper.
Paper does not give away the secret of the method of preparation of the algae for the isolation
of useful carrageenans – this is proprietary company knowledge. But it is known that heating
the algae plays a major role in this process. “Basically, the modification of oligo- and
polysaccharides is an optimized heating process, in which temperature, duration and
occasionally also the pH is changed or salts are added for best results,” said Paper.
Article
25-Jan-2008
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Further information
Anoxymer GmbH
Dr. Dietrich Paper (Head of Research and Development)
Schelztorstr. 54-56
73728 Esslingen
Tel.: +49 (0)711 90121090
Fax: +49 (0)711 90121099
E-mail: info(at)anoxymer.info
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