Abstract
Chitin and its derivative chitosan are among the most used polysaccharides for biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. Most of the commercially available chitin is obtained from seafood wastes. However, the interest in alternative renewable sources of chitin and chitosan, such as insects, is growing. When new sources are identified, their stability over time has to be evaluated to allow for their commercialization. The aim of this study is to compare the physicochemical properties of chitin extracted from Cicada orni sloughs harvested in three different years (2017, 2019 and 2020) in order to assess the stability of the source and the repeatability of the extraction process. Chitin and its derivative chitosan were characterized by simple techniques such as Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Results suggest that the physicochemical properties of the extracted chitin varied from year to year, and that these differences are not due to the extraction process, but rather to intrinsic differences within the source. We showed that these differences could already be detected by analyzing the raw material (i.e., cicada sloughs) using the above-mentioned simple methods. The chitosan obtained from deacetylation of chitin had a low degree of deacetylation (66.2±1.6%). This low degree of deacetylation can be attributed to the deacetylation process, which is probably not appropriate for this source of chitin.
Highlights
IntroductionChitin is a linear polymer composed of units of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (acetylated unit) and D-glucosamine (deacetylated unit), found in natural sources (i.e., the exoskeleton of arthropods, cell walls of fungi) in association with proteins, minerals and pigments.The removal of these elements, in order to obtain pure chitin, is realized in three steps: the demineralization of the raw material, its deproteinization and its decolorization [1].Through a process of deacetylation, which consists in the removal of acetyl groups, chitin can be transformed into its derivative chitosan
Chitin is a linear polymer composed of units of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine and D-glucosamine, found in natural sources in association with proteins, minerals and pigments.The removal of these elements, in order to obtain pure chitin, is realized in three steps: the demineralization of the raw material, its deproteinization and its decolorization [1].Through a process of deacetylation, which consists in the removal of acetyl groups, chitin can be transformed into its derivative chitosan
We found that it has a low degree of deacetylation, which can be attributed to the extraction process, which is probably not appropriate for the deacetylation of this source
Summary
Chitin is a linear polymer composed of units of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (acetylated unit) and D-glucosamine (deacetylated unit), found in natural sources (i.e., the exoskeleton of arthropods, cell walls of fungi) in association with proteins, minerals and pigments.The removal of these elements, in order to obtain pure chitin, is realized in three steps: the demineralization of the raw material, its deproteinization and its decolorization [1].Through a process of deacetylation, which consists in the removal of acetyl groups, chitin can be transformed into its derivative chitosan. Chitin is a linear polymer composed of units of N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (acetylated unit) and D-glucosamine (deacetylated unit), found in natural sources (i.e., the exoskeleton of arthropods, cell walls of fungi) in association with proteins, minerals and pigments. The removal of these elements, in order to obtain pure chitin, is realized in three steps: the demineralization of the raw material, its deproteinization and its decolorization [1]. Α-chitin is the most abundant polymorph and if found in fungi, insect exoskeleton and shells of crustaceans, while β- and γ-chitin are uncommon and are found in squid pens and in beetles (family Lucanidae), respectively [3]. Chitosan has a pKa value of 6.2, meaning that when the pH is above this value, its amino groups (NH2 )
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