Production and composition of an exocellular Nigeran-protein complex isolated from cultures of Aspergillus awamori

Abstract

Aspergillus awamori Nakazawa (QM873) hyphae maintained on a nitrogendeficient medium produced an exocellular complex consisting of the wall cxglucan, nigeran (94%), water-soluble nigeran oligosaccharides (1 to 2%), protein (2 to 4%), and a small amount of P-glycan (<1%). Nigeran was not covalently linked

Production by Aspergillus awamori of homologous oligosaccharides, each with an uneven number of glucosyl units and a reducing terminal (alpha , 1 leads to 4) linkage

“…Aspergillus awamori and certain other members of the genera Aspergillus and Penicillium accumulate the linear a-glucan nigeran in their hypha cell walls when deprived of a usable nitrogen source (5,8). They eventually release some of the nigeran complexed with protein (3,4) into the cultural filtrate. As in the case with nigeran in the cell wall, the polymer chains in this complex are arranged in a lamellar crystalline array (5).…”