New 4-deoxy-(1→3)-β-D-glucan-based oligosaccharides and their immunostimulating potential.

(1→3)-β-D-Glucans are well-established natural biological immunomodulators. However, problems inherited with the natural origin of these polysaccharides bring about significant setbacks, including batch-to-batch heterogeneity and significant differences based on the source and isolation techniques. In this study, we tried to overcome these problems by preparation of a quantitatively new set of oligo-(1→3)-β-D-glucan-based synthetic immunomodulators. Some of these non-natural oligosaccharides showed biological activities, such as stimulation of phagocytosis, modulation of gene expression, and anti-cancer activity, which were superior to natural glucans.