Molecular Weight-Dependent Immunomodulatory Activities of Carboxymethyl Pachymaran by Inducing Macrophage Polarization via TLR4 Signaling Pathways

Publication Date

10-31-2026

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

Food Research International

Volume

242

DOI

10.1016/j.foodres.2026.120075

Abstract

This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the molecular weight of carboxymethyl pachymaran (CMP) and its immunomodulatory activities, and to identify the molecular weight range responsible for activating the TLR4 pathways. Thirteen kinds of CMPs with different molecular weights ranging from 49 kDa to 655 kDa were obtained using enzymatic degradation. The structure of CMPs was characterized by FT-IR, NMR, XRD, TGA, and SEM. We found that the reduction in molecular weight modified the surface morphology of CMP, while the main structure remained unchanged. Our results indicated that CMP0 (655 kDa) failed to exert immunomodulatory effects by activating the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB and TLR4/TRIF/IRF3 pathway. The CMPD12 (112 kDa) activated both TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB and TLR4/TRIF/IRF3 signaling pathways, promoted the secretion of NO, TNF-α, IL-6, IL-1β, and IFN-β in RAW264.7 cells, and induced M1 polarization, thereby exerting the optimal immunomodulatory activity. In contrast, CMPD60 (49 kDa) failed to activate the TLR4/MyD88/NF-κB pathway to induce the secrete of NO and cytokines in RAW264.7 cells, it only activated the TLR4/TRIF/IRF3 pathway to promote IFN-β secretion and M1 polarization in macrophages, exerting weak immunomodulatory activity. Our results revealed the molecular weight range responsible for the immunomodulatory activities of CMP, suggesting its potential application as an immunomodulating agent.

Funding Number

2025AFD498

Funding Sponsor

Natural Science Foundation of Hubei Province

Keywords

Carboxymethyl pachymaran, Immunomodulation, Molecular weight, Signal pathway

Department

Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging; Nutrition, Food Science and Packaging

Link to Full Text

Share

COinS