Structural characterization of a polysaccharide and a β-glucan isolated from the edible mushroom Flammulina velutipes

Two polysaccharides were isolated from the basidiomycete Flammulina velutipes, via successive hot extraction with water and aq. KOH. The samples were analyzed by GC-MS, mono- and bidimensional spectroscopy, and controlled Smith degradations. A branched β-glucan was isolated and another polysaccharide, with a molar mass 30.8 × 104 g/mol, was characterized as a complex xylomannan.