Bioactive Exopolysaccharides from the Cultured Cells of Tomato, Lycopersicon esculentum var. San Marzano

Three exopolysaccharides, EPS(1), EPS(2), and EPS(3), were isolated from suspension-cultured cells of tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum, var. San Marzano). The partial primary structures were determined on the basis of spectroscopic analyses. EPS(2) was a heteropolysaccharide with a tetrasaccharide repeating unit constituted by sugars having one residue in R-manno, one residue in alpha-manno, and two different residues in alpha-gluco/galacto configurations. EPS(3) was a heteropolysaccharide with a pentasaccharide repeating unit with sugars having three residues in R-manno, one residue in R-gluco/galacto, and one residue in alpha-gluco/galacto configurations. The anticytotoxic activities of exopolysaccharides were tested in a brine shrimp bioassay.