Zymosan is a

glucan A glucan is a polysaccharide derived from D-glucose, linked by glycosidic bonds. Glucans are noted in two forms: alpha glucans and beta glucans. Many beta-glucans are medically important. They represent a drug target for antifungal medications o ...

with repeating

glucose Glucose is a simple sugar with the molecular formula . Glucose is overall the most abundant monosaccharide, a subcategory of carbohydrates. Glucose is mainly made by plants and most algae during photosynthesis from water and carbon dioxide, u ...

units connected by β-1,3-glycosidic linkages. It binds to

TLR 2 Toll-like receptor 2 also known as TLR2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ''TLR2'' gene. TLR2 has also been designated as CD282 (cluster of differentiation 282). TLR2 is one of the toll-like receptors and plays a role in the immune sy ...

and Dectin-1 ( CLEC7A). Zymosan is a ligand found on the surface of fungi, like yeast. Zymosan is prepared from yeast cell wall and consists of protein-carbohydrate complexes. It is used to induce experimental sterile inflammation. In macrophages, zymosan-induced responses include the induction of proinflammatory cytokines, arachidonate mobilization, protein phosphorylation, and inositol phosphate formation. Zymosan A also raises cyclin D2 levels suggesting a role for the latter in macrophage activation besides proliferation. It potentiates acute liver damage after galactosamine injection suggesting that certain types of nonparenchymal cells other than Kupffer cells are involved in zymosan action.Zymosan A from Saccharomyces cerevisiae
Merck KGaA

References

External links

* {{Carbohydrates Polysaccharides