A highly branched 1,3-β-d-glucan extracted from Aureobasidium pullulans induces cytokine production in DBA/2 mouse-derived splenocytes

We recently elucidated the structure of a highly branched 1,3-β-d-glucan with 6-monoglucopyranosyl side chains, extracted from Aureobasidium pullulans (AP-FBG). Although the biological effects of β-d-glucans are known to depend on their structures, the effects of a highly branched 1,3-β-d-glucan on the production of cytokines by leukocytes in mice have not yet been elucidated. In this study, we found that AP-FBG strongly induced the production of various cytokines, especially Th1 cytokines (e.g., IFN-γ and IL-12p70) and Th17 cytokines (e.g., IL-17A), but did not induce the production of IL-4, IL-10, and TNF-α in DBA/2 mouse-derived splenocytes in vitro.