Physicochemical properties and antidiabetic effects of a polysaccharide obtained from Polygonatum odoratum

Summary In this study, we isolated a novel polysaccharide (YZ‐2) (molecular weight: 5345.3 Da) from Polygonatum odoratum ( Mill .) Druce and investigated its physicochemical properties and antidiabetic effects in the type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) mice induced by a low dose of streptozotocin coupled with a high‐fat diet. The results showed that YZ‐2 had no triple‐helix conformation and was mainly composed of α‐mannopyranose, α‐glucopyranose and α‐galactopyranose residues. Moreover, YZ‐2 could significantly decrease the fasting blood glucose (Glc) level ( P < 0.01), the serum TC, TG and LDL‐c concentrations ( P < 0.05), as well as the fasting insulin level and improve the Glc tolerance capacity in the T2DM mice. Additionally, YZ‐2 could protect livers and pancreas by remarkably increasing SOD and CAT activities and GSH content ( P < 0.05) in the liver of T2DM mice. Collectively, these results suggested that YZ‐2 could be a promising functional food supplement for T2DM treatment.