Analytical techniques for studying structures of dermatan sulfate and low molecular weight dermatan sulfate

A process of chemical depolymerization of dermatan sulfate (DS) byfree radicals ispresented. The low molecular weight dermatan sulfate (LMW-DS) obtained by radicai fragmentation is characterized by physico-chemicalproperties (molecular weight, sulfate/carboxyl ratto, uronic acid percentage, electrophoretic profile), purity (by thè agarose electrophoretic method) and structure (specific enzymatic cleavage and "C-NMR). Physico-chemical properties and structure of LMW-DS are compared with those of thè parent DS.