Characterization and Antitumor Activity of a Polysaccharide from Sarcodia ceylonensis

A water-soluble polysaccharide from Sarcodia ceylonensis was obtained by using the method of water-extraction and ethanol-precipitation. The polysaccharide was further purified by chromatography on AB-8 and ADS-7 columns, yielding a pure polysaccharide termed SCP-60. The molecular weight (Mw) of SCP-60 was calculated to be 50.0 kDa, based on the calibration curve obtained with a series of Dextran T standards. The results of FT-IR indicated that the polysaccharide contains the alpha-configuration of sugar units. GC-MS analysis revealed that SCP-60 was mainly composed of galactose and glucose. NMR spectroscopy revealed SCP-60 had the backbone consisting of -> 6)-alpha-Manp-(1 ->, alpha-D-Glcp-(1 ->, -> 6)-alpha-D-Glcp-(1 -> and -> 6)-alpha-Galp-(1 ->. In order to evaluate the antitumor activity in vivo of the polysaccharide, a sarcoma 180 model was used. The results showed SCP-60 had strong antitumor ability, meanwhile, SCP-60 at a high dose (100 mg/kg) could significantly increase the thymic and splenic indices of S180 mice, and strongly promote the secretion of IL-2, TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma, increase the SOD activities and reduce the concentrations of MDA in blood. Therefore the polysaccharide SCP-60 should be explored as a novel potential antitumor drug.