ABSTRACT
Polysaccharides are a common group of polymers used as carriers for a variety of natural substances. Among such materials may be primarily cited cellulose, starch, dextrans, agarose, and the cross-linked derivatives of the latter, such as Sephadex, Sephacryls and certain types of Sepharose. Much attention was paid to obtaining systems made up of a carrier and the mucopolysaccharide of heparin used as an anticoagulant. Heparin derivatives are potential non-thrombogenic materials. On the other hand, sorbents containing bound heparin find applications in affinity chromatography. It transpires from the structural formula that in addition to the OH-groups the heparin molecule includes sulphamide-, sulpho- and carboxyl groups, a fact which largely determines methods whereby it binds to carriers. A distinctive feature of the chemical make-up of monosaccharides is that they can exist as a number of tautomeric forms. However, for most saccharides the amount of acyclic aldehyde forms in solution is relatively negligible.
