Psyllium seed gum

Psyllium seed gum comes from plants of the Plantago genus and is cultivated mainly in The Mediterranean and in India. Psyllium has been used for many years in medical applications and more recently there has been a resurgency of interest because it has been seen as a soluble dietary fibre. The proposed structure is of a backbone of D-xylopyranosyl units linked (1-4) and (1-3) with the 4-linked units bearing side chains. The side chains consist of αα-L-arabinofuranosyl units linked (1-3) and (1-2) and β-D-xylopyranosyl units linked (1-3) and (1-2) and the α-D-Galap-(1-2)-α-L-Rhap aldobiuronic acid units linked (1-2) to the main chain.