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Galactan (galactosan) is a polysaccharide consisting of polymerized galactose. In general, galactans in natural sources contain a core of galactose units connected by α(1→3) or α(1→6), with structures containing other monosaccharides as side-chains.

Galactan derived from Anogeissus latifolia is primarily α(1→6), but galactan from acacia trees is primarily α(1→3).

Halymenia durvillei is a red seaweed (algae) that produces a sulfated galactan. Several other algae species also contain galactans. Including Carpopeltis F.Schmitz, 1895.

Galactan is found in the side chains of rhamnogalacturonan I (RG-I) and is needed for gel formation in the cell walls of organisms. It was observed there was less of the gelling characteristic (as well as the polymeric chains being more likely to degrade) when fewer galactans were present in the polymeric side chains.

See also

• Agar
• Galactooligosaccharide

References

1. Galactans at the U.S. National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
2. Zanetti, Maurizio; Capra, Donald J. (2003-09-02). The Antibodies. CRC Press. p. 78. ISBN 9780203216514.
3. Zanetti, Maurizio (1995). The antibodies. Luxembourg: Harwood Academic Publishers. p. 78. ISBN 0-415-28466-X.
4. Fenoradosoa, T. A.; Delattre, C.; Laroche, C.; Wadouachi, A.; Dulong, V.; Picton, L.; Andriamadio, P.; Michaud, P. (1 August 2009). "Highly sulphated galactan from Halymenia durvillei (Halymeniales, Rhodophyta), a red seaweed of Madagascar marine coasts". Int J Biol Macromol. 45 (2): 140–5. doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2009.04.015. PMID 19409410.
5. Advances in Carbohydrate Chemistry and Biochemistry Vol. 65 (2011), p. 168, at Google Books
6. I.J. Miller and J. Mollion, Evaluation of the structures of galactans from Carpopeltis sp. a member of the Halymeniales in the western Indian Ocean, Bot. Mar., 49 (2006) 79-85
7. ^ Mikshina, Polina V.; Makshakova, Olga N.; Petrova, Anna A.; Gaifullina, Ilzira Z.; Idiyatullin, Bulat Z.; Gorshkova, Tatyana A.; Zuev, Yuriy F. (September 2017). "Gelation of rhamnogalacturonan I is based on galactan side chain interaction and does not involve chemical modifications". Carbohydrate Polymers. 171: 143–151. doi:10.1016/j.carbpol.2017.05.013. PMID 28578948.
8. Robal, Marju; Truus, Kalle; Volobujeva, Olga; Mellikov, Enn; Tuvikene, Rando (November 2017). "Thermal stability of red algal galactans: Effect of molecular structure and counterions". International Journal of Biological Macromolecules. 104 (Pt A): 213–223. doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2017.05.175. ISSN 0141-8130. PMID 28587967.

• Carbohydrates