A Low-Volume, Parallel Copper-Bicinchoninic Acid (BCA) Assay for Glycoside Hydrolases.

The quantitation of liberated reducing sugars by the copper-bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay provides a highly sensitive method for the measurement of glycoside hydrolase (GH) activity, particularly on soluble polysaccharide substrates. Here we describe a straightforward method adapted to low-volume polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tubes that enables the rapid, parallel determination of GH kinetics in applications ranging from initial activity screening and assay optimization to precise Michaelis-Menten analysis.

Configured for the Human Gut Microbiota: Molecular Mechanisms of Dietary β-Glucan Utilization.

The β-glucans are a disparate group of structurally diverse polysaccharides, whose members are widespread in human diets as components of the cell walls of plants, algae, and fungi (including yeasts), and as bacterial exopolysaccharides. Individual β-glucans from these sources have long been associated with positive effects on human health through metabolic and immunological effects. Remarkably, the β-configured glucosidic linkages that define these polysaccharides render them inaccessible to the limited repertoire of digestive enzymes encoded by the human genome.

Cardiac glycosides from Erysimum cheiranthoides.

Three new cardiac glycosides named cheiranthoside VIII (1), cheiranthoside IX (2) and cheiranthoside X (3) were isolated from the seeds of Erysimum cheiranthoides. Based on spectroscopic data, the structures of 1-3 were characterized as strophanthidin 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->4)-beta-D-antiaropyranoside, cheiranthidin 3-O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->4)-beta-D-boiviopyranoside and cheiranthidin 3-O-alpha-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1-->4)-beta-D-digitoxopyranoside, respectively. The aglycone moiety possessing a carboxyl group at C-10 of 2 and 3 was regarded to be determined for the first time.