Rheological and gelling properties of a novel glucan from Leuconostoc dextranicum NRRL B-1146

The glucan produced by glucansucrase by the bacterial strain Leuconostoc dextranicum NRRL B-1146 was purified and characterized for its certain properties. The glucan was precipitated by ethanol and further purified by size exclusion chromatography. The purified glucan was homogenous and free of protein. The rheological properties of glucan were studied. The steady shear measurements for the semi-dilute glucan solution indicated that the viscosity (η) of the glucan solution decreased with the increase in shear stress (τ) and exhibited typical non-Newtonian pseudoplastic behavior, indicating branched nature of glucan. The surface morphology studied using Scanning Electron Microscopy revealed that the glucan has a porous structure. This glucan can be used as thickening or gelling agent in food or in the sourdoughs in bakery applications.