Abstract
The main oligosaccharide fraction obtained from the water extract of the tuberous roots of Ophiopogon japonicus KER-GAWLER var. genuinus MAXIMOWICZ was purified by the gel filtration on Sephadex G-25, and separated into three oligosaccharides. They were a heptasaccharide composed of one glucose unit and six fructose units, a hexasaccharide composed of one glucose unit and five fructose units, and a pentasaccharide composed of one glucose unit and four fructose units. Methylation and periodate oxidation studies showed that the each oilgosaccharide possesses the structure consisted of a chain of 2→1 linked D-fructofuranose units having a D-glucopyranose residue, joined by a type of sucrose bond, on the end.
