Processing-driven structure-activity relationships of Polygonatum rhizome polysaccharides: From traditional processing to microbial fermentation.

Polygonatum rhizome polysaccharides (PRP) are the principal bioactive components of Polygonatum, a medicinal and edible plant widely used in traditional Chinese medicine for health promotion. Processing methods have been traditionally employed to enhance the therapeutic efficacy of Polygonatum products, yet the structure-activity relationships underlying these improvements remain incompletely understood. This review provides a focused comparison of how traditional processing methods (steaming and wine-processing) and modern microbial fermentation alter the structural characteristics of PRP, including molecular weight, monosaccharide composition, glycosidic linkage patterns, chain conformation, and micromorphology, and correlates these processing-driven structural modifications with enhanced bioactivities such as antioxidant, immunomodulatory, hypoglycemic, cardioprotective, anti-aging, and cognition-improving activities. Furthermore, the physicochemical and enzymatic mechanisms underlying processing-induced structural transformations are also discussed. This review provides a theoretical foundation for establishing structure-activity-driven processing strategies that bridge traditional empirical approaches with modern biotechnological precision, thereby facilitating the development of PRP-based functional foods and pharmaceuticals.