PURPOSE The beneficial properties of β-glucans have been recognized for centuries. Their proposed mechanisms of action in cancer therapy occur via stimulation of macrophages and priming of innate neutrophil complement receptor 3 for eliciting complement receptor 3-dependent cellular cytotoxicity of iC3b-opsonized tumor cells. The current study is to investigate whether β-glucan therapy has any ...

β-D-glucan is a D-glucose biopolymer. The cell wall of yeast contains β-Dglucans. βGlucan has been isolated from barley, oat, mushrooms, algae bacteria and yeasts. Spent brewer’s yeast has been widely used for β-glucan production but yeast waste biomass from wine industry has not been yet utilized. Yeast β-glucan can be incorporated in various functional food, beverage and pharmaceutical produc...

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES The present study investigated the hypothesis that a highly pure linear β-1,3-glucan produced by Agrobacterium sp. R259 enhances human natural killer (NK) cell activity and suppresses pro-inflammatory cytokines. SUBJECTS/METHODS In an eight-week, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trial, 83 healthy adults with white blood cell counts of 4,000-8,000 cel...

The cereal cell wall polysaccharide (1-3,1-4)-β-glucan is a linear polymer of glucose containing both β1-3 and β1-4 bonds. The structure of (1-3,1-4)-β-glucan varies between different cereals and during plant growth and development, but little is known about how this is controlled. The cellulose synthase-like CslF6 protein is an integral membrane protein and a major component of the (1-3,1-4)-β...

Candida biofilm infections pose an increasing threat in the health care setting due to the drug resistance associated with this lifestyle. Several mechanisms underlie the resistance phenomenon. In Candida albicans, one mechanism involves drug impedance by the biofilm matrix linked to β-1,3 glucan. Here, we show this is important for other Candida spp. We identified β-1,3 glucan in the matrix, f...

Forty weanling piglets (5.6±0.5 kg and 26 to 30 d of age) were used in a 28-d experiment to determine the effects of βglucan from Paenibacillus polymyxa and L-theanine on growth performance. Piglets were randomly allotted to four groups (n = 10, 2 animals per pen) provided with the basal feed (control), β-glucan 400 mg/kg feed, L-theanine 80 mg/kg feed or β-glucan plus l-theanine (combination o...

BACKGROUND The role of β-glucan in children with respiratory problems is getting more and more attention. In this report we focused on the effects of 30 days oral supplementation with β-glucan on physical activity and immune status of children with respiratory problems. METHODS We measured the level of sIgA, eNO and physical activity [using a 6-minute walking test (6MWT)] in 77 children and e...

Acids and alkalis are considered important catalysts in biomass pretreatment, which is essential to overcome the recalcitrance of lignocellulose for sugar release. In this study, the effects of various chemicals and temperatures on the pretreatment and subsequent enzymatic hydrolysis of wheat straw were investigated. The conversions of glucan and xylan during pretreatment and enzymatic hydrolys...

β-Glucans, mostly from oats, have been shown to reduce blood concentrations of total and LDL-cholesterol in animals and humans. After processing, spent brewer’s yeast, a by-product of the fermentation process, contains 85% 90% βglucans. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of yeast-derived β-glucan fiber on plasma lipids and early atherosclerosis development in hamsters consumin...

Bovine serum albumin (BSA), Tween-20, and polyethylene glycol (PEG6000) were added to washed corn stover solids produced by ammonia fiber expansion (AFEX), ammonia recycled percolation (ARP), dilute sulfuric acid (DA), lime, controlled pH, and sulfur dioxide (SO(2)) pretreatments and to untreated corn stover (UT) and pure Avicel glucan prior to adding cellulase supplemented with beta-glucosidas...