Structure of a novel highly branched alpha-glucan enzymatically produced from maltodextrin.

The bacterial strain PP710, isolated from soil and identified as Paenibacillus species, produced a low-digestibility alpha-glucan containing a large amylase-resistant portion. This alpha-glucan was obtained in high yields from maltodextrin (dextrose equivalent 3) by using the condensed culture supernatant of the strain as the enzyme preparation. The water-soluble dietary fiber content of the low-digestibility alpha-glucan was 80.2%, and showed resistance to a rat intestinal enzyme preparation. The alpha-glucan was found to be a novel highly branched alpha-glucan by acid hydrolysis, NMR analysis, gel permeation chromatography, methylation analysis, and enzymatic digestion.