Studies on acacia exudate gums, part IV. Distribution of molecular components in Acacia seyal in relation to Acacia senegal

Acacia seyal was fractionated on the basis of molecular size and hydrophobicity into a number of fractions. The molecular weight of the whole gum and its fractions were determined using gel permeation chromatography (GPC) with on-line monitoring using light scattering, refractive index and UV absorbance detectors. The results show that the three main components designated arabinogalactan protein (AGP), arabinogalactan (AG) and glycoprotein (GP) known to be present in Acacia senegal could also be present in A. seyal. However, in A. senegal, the high molecular weight AGP component is more significant and is present in greater proportion than for A. seyal. The most important difference is that at least two components are present in the high molecular weight fraction in A. seyal, indicating that it would be erroneous to identify this completely with the AGP fraction in A. senegal.