ABSTRACT
Some ß-glucans have attracted attention due to their functionality as an immunostimulant and have been used in processed foods. However, accurately measuring the ß-glucan content of processed foods using existing methods is difficult. We demonstrate a new method, the Sodium hypochlorite Extracting and Enzymatic Digesting (SEED) assay, in which ß-glucan is extracted using sodium hypochlorite, dimethyl sulfoxide, and 5 mol/L sodium hydroxide and then digested into ß-glucan fragments using Westase which is an enzyme having ß-1,6- and ß-1,3 glucanase activity. The ß-glucan fragments are further digested into glucose using exo-1,3-ß-d-glucanase and ß-glucosidase. We measured ß-glucan comprising ß-1,3-, -1,6-, and -1,(3),4- bonds in various polysaccharide reagents and processed foods using our novel method. The SEED assay was able to quantify ß-glucan with good reproducibility, and the recovery rate was >90% for food containing ß-glucan. Therefore, the SEED assay is capable of accurately measuring the ß-glucan content of processed foods.
