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What is chitosan?
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Chitosan comes from chitin a natural biopolymer
originating from crustacean shells. Chitin is similar to cellulose in
morphology; a bountiful natural polysaccharide that contains amino sugars.
Partial deacetylation of chitin
gives rise to chitosan, a linear polysaccharide with interspersed D-glucosamine,
and acetyl-D-glucosamine units. The preponderance and distribution of
acetyl-D-glucosamine residues lead to differing physicochemical properties and
biological responses.
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Chitosan
Applications
Due to its natural abundance
and specific biological properties, chitosan
is an
attractive material for multiple
applications including the following :
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Application |
Summary |
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Biomedical
- Drug delivery
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Cell delivery
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Orthopedics
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Wound healing
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Surgical sutures
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Opthalmology
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Skin treatments
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Pharmaceuticals
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Dentistry
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Bone healing
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Chitosan
is biocompatible,1-3 shows antimicrobial
and antifungic activities4-5 which makes it a favorable option for biomedical applications.
It has been proven to be useful in promoting tissue growth
in tissue repair and accelerating wound-healing and bone regeneration.6-7
Moreover, chitosan can be incorporated into hydrogels and
microspheres which demonstrate large potential in delivery systems for drugs,
proteins or genes.8-11 |
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Nutritional
- Cholesterol-lowering effects
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Fiber and weight loss effects
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Chitosan has a
strong positive charge; studies indicate that chitosan's charge helps it bind to
fats and cholesterol and initiates clotting of red blood cells.12
It acts as a fiber; these fiber-like
properties can be used to replace calories in foods.12
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Cosmetic
- Hair care
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Skin care
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Oral care |
Chitosan's strong positive charge allows it to bind to negatively charged
surfaces such as hair and skin which makes it a useful ingredient in hair and
skin products.12
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Other popular
uses of chitosan include food applications, waste and water treatment, and
agricultural applications.
References
| 1 |
Mattioli-Belmonte M, Muzzarelli B, Muzzarelli RAA. Chitin and chitosan in
wound healing and other biomedical applications. Carbohydr Eur
1997(19Dec):30-36. |
| 2 |
Shigemasa Y, Minami S.
Applications of chitin and chitosan for biomaterials. Biotechnol Gen Eng Rev
1995;13:383-420. |
| 3 |
Muzzarelli RAA, Biagini G.
Role and fate of exogeneous chitosans in human wound tissues. Ed Chitin
Enzymology, Eur Chitin Soc 1993, Ancona. |
| 4 |
Nishimura K, Nishimura S, Nishi N, Saiki I, Tokura S, Azuma I. Immunological
activity of chitin and its derivatives. Vaccine 1984;2:93-99. |
| 5 |
Choi BK, Kim KY, Yoo YJ, Oh
SJ, Choi JH, Kim CY. In vitro antimicrobial activity of a
chitooligosaccharide mixture against Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans
and Streptococcus mutans. Int J Antimicrob Agents 2001;18:553-557 |
| 6 |
Muzzarelli RAA. Human enzymatic activities related to the therapeutic
administration of chitin derivatives. Cell Mol Life Sci 1997;53:131-140. |
| 7 |
Ruel-Gariepy E, Chenite A, Chaput C, Guirguis S, Leroux JC. Characterization
of thermosensitive chitosan gels for the sustained delivery of drugs. Int J
Pharm 2000;203:89-98. |
| 8 |
Vila A, Sanchez A, Tobio M,
Calvo P, Alonso MJ. Design of biodegradable particles for protein delivery.
J Control Release 2002;78:15-24. |
| 9 |
Janes KA, Fresneau MP,
Marazuela A, Fabra A, Alonso MJ. Chitosan nanoparticles as delivery systems
for doxorubicin. J Controlled Release 2001;73:255-267. |
| 10 |
Borchard G. Chitosans for gene delivery. Adv Drug Deliv Rev 2001;52:145-150. |
| 11 |
Aiba
SI. Studies on chitosan : 6. Relationship between N-acetyl group
distribution pattern and chitinase digestibility of partially N-acetylated
chitosans. Int J Biol Macromol 1993;15:241-245. |
| 12 |
Chitin : A Natural Product
for the 21st Century, International Commission on Natural Health Products,
1995. |
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