Dextran sulfuric acid half esters

Dextran Sulfuric Acid Half Esters (Dextran Sulfates). 219... 

In contrast to dextran phosphate, which is only of scientific interest up to now, the dextran sulfuric acid half ester and its sodium salt, usually simple referred to as dextran sulfate, is a commercially available product today. Its high purity, water solubility and reproducible quality commend it for many applications in molecular biology and the health care sector. 

Comparison of the activity of sulfated homopolysaccharides such as dextran and cellulose esters with that of neutral homopolysaccharides and sulfated heteropolysaccharides such as heparin and heparan sulfuric acid half esters shows potent virucidal activity against human T-cell lymphotropic virus type III (HTLV-III) for the sulfated homopolysaccharides. In contrast, neutral homopolysaccharides have no effect and sulfated heteropolysaccharides exhibit only a little effect on HTLV-III activities. This suggests that the sulfate moiety and the type of polysaccharide are most important in inhibiting growth of HTLV-III [126]. 

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