Abstract
Polysaccharides produced by a wide variety of microorganisms are generally water-soluble gums and possess novel and unique properties. Due to their low cost, these biopolymers have emerged as new and industrially important polymeric substances competing with natural gums obtained from marine algae and higher plants. Due to diversity in structure and physicochemical characteristics, microbial polysaccharides have found a wide range of applications as emulsifiers, stabilizers, binders, gelling agents, coagulants, and suspending agents in food industry. The unique rheological properties of these biopolymers are attributable to their high purity and regular structure which make them best suited for the food industry. Polysaccharides of microbial origin are nontoxic, biodegradable, environment friendly, and remain active at extreme temperature, pH, and salinity. Due to superior properties, these are good alternatives to and may replace synthetic and other natural water-soluble gums and may prove as novel polymers in the food industry as thickening, suspending, and gelling agents. Employing genetically modified microorganisms under controlled fermentation conditions may result in the production of new exopolysaccharides having novel superior properties, which may open up new areas of industrial applications.
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