Autor(es):
Jayakumar, R.
; Reis, R. L.
; Mano, J. F.
Data: 2006
Identificador Persistente: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/20155
Origem: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
Descrição
Chitin and chitosan are natural based non-toxic,
biodegradable and biocompatible polymers and have been used in
biomedical areas in the form of sutures, wound healing materials and
artificial skin, and for the sustained release of drugs as well as in various
industrial applications. However, practical use of these polymers has
been mainly confined to the unmodified forms. Recently, there has been
a growing interest in chemical modification of chitin and chitosan to
improve their solubility and widen their applications. Among them,
phosphorylated chitin and chitosan have attracted considerable interest
because of their various advantages: anti-inflammatory property, ability
to form metal complexes, blood compatibility and formation of anionic
polyelectrolyte hydrogels. The purpose of this review is to take a closer
look of different synthetic methods of phosphorylated chitin and chitosan
and their potential applications in environmental, food, fuel cell, and
biomedical fields. Based on current research and existing products,
some new and futuristic approaches in this context area are discussed.