Abstract
Chitosan is a biodegradable natural polymer derived from the exoskeleton of crustaceans. Because of its biocompatibility and non-biotoxicity, chitosan is widely used in the fields of medicine and agriculture. With the latest technology and technological progress, different active functional groups can be connected by modification, surface modification, or other configurations with various physical, chemical, and biological properties. These changes can significantly expand the application range and efficacy of chitosan polymers. This paper reviews the different uses of chitosan, such as catheter bridging to repair nerve broken ends, making wound auxiliaries, as tissue engineering repair materials for bone or cartilage, or as carriers for a variety of drugs to expand the volume or slow-release and even show potential in the fight against COVID-19. In addition, it is also discussed that chitosan in agriculture can improve the growth of crops and can be used as an antioxidant coating because its natural antibacterial properties are used alone or in conjunction with a variety of endophytic bacteria and metal ions. Generally speaking, chitosan is a kind of polymer material with excellent development prospects in medicine and agriculture.
Highlights
Published: 28 February 2022Chitosan is a degradable multifunctional biopolymer obtained by chemical or enzymatic deacetylation from crustacean exoskeleton, insect cuticle, and fungal mycelium, which is a D-glucosamine linked by a β-1,4 glycosidic bond [1,2] (Figure 1A,B)
Chitosan inhibits different species of microorganisms such as bacteria and fungi, nism is influenced by several factors, including the degree of deacetylation, pH, divalent and the mechanism is influenced by several factors, including the degree of deacetylation, cations, and solvent type
Cu2+, Zn2+, and Ni2+ have fungicidal and disinfectant properties, and when chitosan is combined with metal ions, it enhances the antibacterial activity against A. solanacearum, A. griseus, and A. curvatus
Summary
Chitosan is a degradable multifunctional biopolymer obtained by chemical or enzymatic deacetylation from crustacean exoskeleton, insect cuticle, and fungal mycelium, which is a D-glucosamine linked by a β-1,4 glycosidic bond [1,2] (Figure 1A,B). Chitosan derivatives with different properties are generated, which are widely used in many fields such as biomedicine, agriculture, wastewater treatment, and food preservation [3,4]. There is an urgent need to develop antimicrobial drugs with new targets. Chitosan and its derivatives have become a research hotspot in the fields of plant growth stimulants and Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. There is an urgent need to develop antimicrobial drugs with new targets. of Chitosan and its derivatives have become a research hotspot in the fields of plant growth stimulants and biological antimicrobial insecticides because of their broad-spectrum rebiological because of their broad-spectrum resistance to bacteria sistance toantimicrobial bacteria and insecticides fungi, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and plant growth-stimand fungi, biodegradability, biocompatibility, and plant growth-stimulating effects
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