Understanding Chitosan Chemistry

The hard shell of crustaceans contains Chitosan, which is an important polymer helpful in controlling cholesterol and reducing weight. Chitosan chemistry provide basis for its use in weight and cholesterol controlling products. Crustaceans are aquatic arthropods including shrimps, clams and lobsters etc. Chitosan polymer contained in outer shells of these arthropods make you think once before throwing away these shells. This significant polymer is most commonly used in weight reduction supplements.

Moreover, products used for cholesterol profile improvement normally contain chemically made fiber of Chitosan. Examination of Chitosan chemistry shows that it is a biopolymer kind of substance. This property makes it possible for manufacturers of cholesterol and weight controlling products to use Chitosan as basic ingredient. Chitosan chemistry involves numerous biomedical applications whenever it is going to be discussed. Following are some of the most common biomedical applications involving the use of Chitosan.

• Wound healing
• Tissue engineering
• Tissue repair
• Local delivery of cells etc

Analysis of Chitosan chemistry revealed that it is made up of N-deacylation, which is a chitin molecule. Chitosan is basically a linear polysaccharide, which is mainly composed of ß (1-4)-linked D-glucosamine together with N-Acetyl glucosamine monomers.

N-acetyl-D-glucosamine is acetylated unit (A) whereas D-glucosamine is a deacetylated unit (D). This chemical composition shows that Chitosan can be produced through the deacetylation of chitin on commercial basis. Chitin is the basic structural element present in the outer skeletons of crustaceans and this has been found out by resources of Chitosan chemistry. Generally, NMR spectroscopy is used to check out the percentage of deacetylation in artificially prepared Chitosan. The deacetylation degree in commercially manufactured Chitosan falls in range of 60 to 100%.

A number of bio-medical studies showed that this significantly useful substance is a good carrier of catalysts. Moreover, numerous resources of Chitosan chemistry depicts that Chitosan is a substance having unique chemical properties. Following are the most significant chemical properties contained by Chitosan.

• Linear poly-D-glucosamine
• Chelating effect on numerous transition- metal ions
• Aids in protein separations
• Offer fungistatic and Basteriostatic effects
• Full capacity of reaction with amino groups

Furthermore, studies of Chitosan chemistry have discovered a noteworthy aspect about the viscosity of Chitosan. According to these studies the Chitosan viscosity is mainly dependent on average molecular weight of Chitosan itself. Chromatography together with technique of light scattering detection is the best possible way of determining this molecular weight.

Amino group is another prime ingredient of Chitosan polymers according to the several studies carried out to find out the exact Chitosan chemistry. Chitosan is a kind of positively charged polymer having about 6.5 pKa value of amino group and therefore these are easily soluble in acidic as well as neutral solutions. These studies about Chitosan chemistry have also concluded that Chitosan polymer either artificially made or naturally available is a bio-adhesive.

This is because it can easily and quickly binds up with surfaces having negative charges on them; for instance, mucosal membranes. It has been concluded by analysts after going through a range of studies about Chitosan chemistry that Chitosan can be utilized in numerous commercial applications.

By Robert Perkis
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