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Summary: An alkali-soluble glucan was obtained from the cell walls of Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCYC1109 and baker's yeast by extraction with cold, dilute sodium hydroxide under nitrogen. The glucan, which represented approximately 20% of the cell wall, precipitated as a gel when the alkaline extract was neutralized. The purified glucan was homogeneous and was shown to be free from contamination by other cell-wall polysaccharides by ultracentrifuging, gel filtration and electro-phoresis. In addition to glucose, the glucan contained traces of mannose and nitrogen, but no hexosamine. Structural analyses revealed the presence of 80–85% (1→3)-β-d linkages, 8–12% (1→6)-β-d linkages and 3·4% branched residues linked through C-1, C-3 and C-6. The molecular weight of the glucan was estimated to be about 250000. Electron-microscopic examination of the cell walls after alkali extraction showed that an amorphous surface layer had been removed revealing numerous bud scar structures.
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