A sulfated exopolysaccharide derived from Chlorella sp. exhibiting in vitro anti-α-d-Glucosidase activity

There is a great scientific curiosity to discover all environments sheltering microalgae, especially those with exceptional characteristics from coldest to hottest ones, the purpose remains to explore the potential of the native microalgae flora and the research for new bioactive compounds. This study aimed to isolate a polysaccharide-producing microalga from an extreme ecosystem and to evaluate its capacity to inhibit the α-d-glucosidase enzyme. Chlorella strain is isolated from hypersaline Lake in the Algerian desert. The exopolysaccharide extraction was performed by the concentration of free-cell supernatant in a rotary evaporator. The infrared analysis showed a characteristic footprint of carbohydrates with particular functional groups, such as sulfate. Gas chromatography–mass spectrometry has revealed a hetero-exopolysaccharide composed of galactose 35.75%, glucose 21.13%, xylose 16.81%, fructose 6.96%, arabinose 5.10%, and glucuronic acid 2.68%. The evaluation of the anti-hyperglycemic activity demonstrated a significant α-d-glucosidase inhibition of 80.94 ± 0.01% at 10 mg mL−1 with IC50 equal to 4.31 ± 0.20 mg mL−1. This study opens a vast prospect to use exopolysaccharides as natural nutraceutical or food additive.