PYTHIUM-APHANIDERMATUM - CULTURE, CELL-WALL COMPOSITION, AND ISOLATION AND STRUCTURE OF ANTITUMOR STORAGE AND SOLUBILIZED CELL-WALL (1 -] 3), (1 -] 6)-BETA-D-GLUCANS

Under optimal conditions for the culture of the fungus Phytium aphanidermatum, no polysaccharides were excreted into the medium. The mycelium contained up to 38% of a slightly branched, storage (1 --> 3),(1 --> 6)-beta-D-glucan with a MW of 20000. The cell-wall polysaccharides of the mycelium comprised 18% of cellulose and 82% of (1 --> 3),(1 --> 6)-beta-D-glucans. Of the non-cellulosic glucans, approximately 33% could be solubilised by extraction with water at 121-degrees, and they had a MW of 10000, were highly branched, and contained 6% of (1 --> 6) linkages. Treatment of the cell wall with 0.1 M trifluoroacetic acid released approximately 50% of the non-cellulosic glucans. The acid-soluble cell-wall (1 --> 3),-(1 --> 6)-beta-D-glucans of lower MW (6000) were still highly branched and contained 14% of (1 --> 6) and 8% of (1 --> 4) linkages. The storage glucan and the hot-water-soluble cell-wall glucan exhibited strong activity against the Sarcoma 180 in CD-1 mice, whereas the acid-soluble cell-wall glucans were inactive. The hot-water-soluble cell-wall glucan was also active against the DBA/2-MC.SC-1 fibrosarcoma in DBA/2 mice.