Analysis of the acid polysaccharides from squid cranial cartilage and examination of a novel polysaccharide

The polysaccharides of cranical cartilge were isolated by ethanol precipitation after papain digestion and β-elimination procedures and were fractionated chromatographically on CPC-cellulose. In addition to the previously described, heavily oversulphated chondroitin sulphate, the tissue contained small amounts of hyaluronic acid, which, however, co-eluted with the chondroitin sulphate from the CPC-cellulose. Approx. 20% of the isolated polysaccharides consisted of an acidic polysaccharide which to our knowledge is not previously described. This polysaccharide consists mainly of glucuronic acid, galactose and mannose in a molar ratio of 1:2:1. Gel chromatography of the preparation indicated a polydisperse molecule with an apparent average molecular weight of 39200 on weight basis $\text{(}\text{M}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>w</mtext>}}\text{)}$ and 31400 on number basis $\text{(}\text{M}{}_{\mathrm{<mtext>n</mtext>}}\text{)}$.