The weight average molecular weight (MW) of the carrageenans was determined by using a Hitachi system (Merck, Germany) with a refractive index detector (L-7490, Hitachi, Merck, Germany) and a multi angle laser light scattering (MALLS) detector (SLD7100, PSS Polymer Standards Service, Germany). The system was equipped with a TSKgel G6000PWXL column (Tosoh Bioscience, Japan) and the column temperature was set at 60 °C. 0.1 M lithium chloride was used as the eluent to prevent aggregation of the carrageenans, as recommended by Lecacheux et al. , with an isocratic flow rate of 0.5 mL/min. The MW of the samples was determined using a refractive index increment of 0.115 g/mL . For the analysis, carrageenan solutions with a concentration of 2 mg/mL were used. The sample solutions were prepared in 0.1 M lithium chloride (eluent) and treated in a water bath at 60 °C until the polysaccharides were completely dissolved.