Application of chromatography in purification and structural analysis of natural polysaccharides: A review

Polysaccharides are widely distributed in natural sources from monocytic microorganisms to higher animals, and are found in a variety of biological activities in recent decades. Natural polysaccharides have the characteristics of large molecular weight, diverse composition, and complex structure, so their purification and structural analysis are difficult issues in research. Chromatography as a powerful separation technique, plays an irreplaceable role in the separation and structural analysis of natural polysaccharides, especially in the purification of polysaccharides, the separation of hydrolysates, and the analysis of monosaccharide composition. The separation mechanisms and application of different chromatographic methods in the studies of polysaccharides were summarized in this review. Moreover, the advantages and drawbacks of various chromatography methods were discussed as well.