Recent advances in bioactive polysaccharides from Lycium barbarum L., Zizyphus jujuba Mill, Plantago spp., and Morus spp.: Structures and functionalities

• Interest in natural polysaccharides is increasing rapidly.
• Polysaccharides from Lycium barbarum, Zizyphus jujuba, Plantago, Morus are reviewed.
• Structural and bioactivities of these polysaccharides are lighted in this review.
• Future perspective and challenges of these polysaccharides are presented.

Recently, a great deal of interest has been paid to polysaccharides isolated from natural sources due to their various beneficial health effects. Many of these special interested polysaccharides have a long history as part of herbal formulas that have been widely accepted in Asian countries. Lycium barbarum L. (L. barbarum), Zizyphus jujuba Mill (Z. jujuba), Plantago spp., and Morus spp. have been widely used in China as traditional herbal medicines and functional foods for millennia. Polysaccharides are bioactive constituents of these plants and are of interest because of their functional properties, which include immunomodulatory, antioxidant, antitumor, and hypoglycemic activity. This paper provides an overview of recent advances in understanding of the physiochemical, structural features and biological effects of these bioactive polysaccharides from L. barbarum, Z. jujuba, Plantago spp., and Morus spp. This review is to provide background and useful updated information for future research and application of these polysaccharides.

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