Enzymatic degradation study of porous chitosan membrane

Abstract

Enzymatic degradation behaviour of porous chitosan membrane was carried out in vitro by enzymatic hydrolysis of chitosan in lysozyme solution. Chitosan was first modified by reducing its molecular weight using gamma (γ ) radiation in the solid state. The chitosan powder was irradiated with gamma Co60 source with various doses of 10, 25, 50 and 100 kGy. The molecular weight of irradiated chitosan was measured using viscometric method. The modified chitosan was transformed into porous membrane by lyophilisation method. Degree of deacetylation (DD) and crystallinity of samples were measured using Fourier transform infrared spectrometry and X-ray diffraction respectively. The results suggested that the irradiated chitosan reduces it molecular weight without changes in DD whereas enzymatic degradation of chitosan shows an increment in DD and crystallinity.