| Summary: | The pectic polysaccharides extracted from flaxseed (<i>Linum usitatissiumum</i> L.) mucilage and kernel were characterized as rhamnogalacturonan-I (RG-I). In this study, the conformational characteristics of RG-I fractions from flaxseed mucilage and kernel were investigated, using a Brookhaven multi-angle light scattering instrument (batch mode) and a high-performance size exclusion chromatography (HPSEC) system coupled with Viscotek tetra-detectors (flow mode). The <i>M<sub>w</sub></i> of flaxseed mucilage RG-I (FM-R) was 285 kDa, and the structure-sensitive parameter (<i>ρ</i>) value of FM-R was calculated as 1.3, suggesting that the FM-R molecule had a star-like conformation. The <i>M<sub>w</sub></i> of flaxseed kernel RG-I (FK-R) was 550 kDa, and the structure-sensitive parameter (<i>ρ</i>) values ranged from 0.90 to 1.21, suggesting a sphere to star-like conformation with relatively higher segment density. The correlation between the primary structure and conformation of RG-I was further discussed to better understand the structure–function relationship, which helps the scale-up applications of pectins in food, pharmaceutical, or cosmetic industries.
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