Abstract
Chitosan, a biopolymer possessing numerous interesting bioactivities and excellent technological properties, has received great attention from scientists in different fields including the food industry, pharmacy, medicine, and environmental fields. A series of recent studies have reported exciting results about improvement of the properties of chitosan using the Maillard reaction. However, there is a lack of a systemic review about the preparation, bioactivities and applications in food industry of chitosan-based Maillard reaction products (CMRPs). The presence of free amino groups in chitosan allows it to acquire some stronger or new functional properties via the Maillard reaction. The present review aims to focus on the current research status of synthesis, optimization and structural identification of CMRPs. The applications of CMRPs in the food industry are also discussed according to their biological and technological properties such as antioxidant, antimicrobial activities and inducing conformational changes of allergens in food. Some promising directions for future research are proposed in this review, aiming to provide theoretical guidance for the further development of chitosan and its derivatives.
Highlights
Chitosan, a biopolymer, possesses different bioactive properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory as well as antioxidant properties, which make it an interesting compound for applications in different fields such as the food industry, pharmacy, medicine and environmental fields [1,2]
Results illustrated that the Maillard reaction could enhance the antimicrobial activity of chitosan and the antimicrobial activity of chitosan-based Maillard reaction products (CMRPs) may be attributed to several antimicrobial mechanisms, such as their high surface activity and interference with the microorganisms’ membranes [94]
The application of prepared CMRPs formed from maltose and low molecular weight chitosan on fresh-cut Typha latifolia L. effectively delayed the increasement of aerobic mesophilic bacteria for 3 days and put the populations of lactic acid bacteria under control during the whole storage period which was longer than the storage time in the group treated with maltose or low molecular weight chitosan only [73]
Summary
A biopolymer, possesses different bioactive properties such as antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory as well as antioxidant properties, which make it an interesting compound for applications in different fields such as the food industry, pharmacy, medicine and environmental fields [1,2]. It has been reported that chitosan has antimicrobial and antioxidant activities which promote its use in the fields of food protection and the pharmaceutical industry in particular [7]. Chitosan has certain limitations and not all chitosans display optimal properties, and research has shown that chitosan with a poor water-solubility at neutral or basic pH and may have limited applications [12,13]. The functional characteristics of chitosan can be influenced by many factors, such as the degree of deacetylation, the molecular weight and its source [14,15]
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