SACCHARIDE-CONTAINING GLUTATHIONE DERIVATIVE AND ITS OXIDIZED FORM DIMER

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain a new saccharide-containing glutathione derivative and its oxidized form dimer which is a glutathione derivative containing a specific saccharide derived from fructose and its dimer in an oxidized form, having hepatopathy-inhibiting actions and useful as a liver protective agent, etc. SOLUTION: This new saccharide-containing glutathione derivative is expressed by formula I (R is a group derived from fructose expressed by formulas II, III, etc.) and its oxidized form dimer is expressed by formula IV. The compound and its salt have hepatopathy-inhibiting actions and are useful as a liver protective agent, etc. These compound can be obtained by inoculating Escherichia coli ATCC 4157 strain, etc., in a medium rich in glucose, etc., culturing by shaking at 37 deg.C for 20 hours, collecting mycelia by centrifuging, adding the mycelia to a reaction solution containing sodium L-glutamate, L-cystine, ATP, etc., reacting at 37 deg.C by shaking for 20 hours, removing a supernatant by centrifuging the reacted solution, producing a copper salt by adding cuprous oxide, separating the copper salt and reacting the salt with hydrogen sulfide.