Biopolymers E-Book

Susheel Kalia

• Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
• Kategorie: Fachliteratur
• Serie: Wiley-Scrivener
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 1063

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2011

Beschreibung

This handbook focuses on biopolymers for both environmental and biomedical applications. It shows recent advances in technology in all areas from chemical synthesis or biosynthesis to end use applications. These areas have not been covered in a single book before and they include biopolymers for chemical and biotechnological modifications, material structures, characterization, processing, properties, and applications. After the introduction which summarizes the importance of biopolymer in the market, the book covers almost all the topics related to polysaccharides, biofibers, bioplastics, biocomposites, natural rubber, gums, bacterial and blood compatible polymers, and applications of biopolymers in various fields.

Leseprobe

Contents

Cover

Half Title page

Title page

Copyright page

Preface

List of Contributors

Part 1 Polysaccharides

Chapter 1: Hyaluronic Acid: A Natural Biopolymer

1.1 Glycosaminoglycans

1.2 Hyaluronic Acid/Hyaluronan – Structure, Occurrence

1.3 Hyaluronan Synthases

1.4 Enzymatic Catabolism of Hyaluronan

1.5 Oxidative Degradation of Hyaluronan

1.6 Hyaluronan Degradation under Inflammatory Conditions

1.7 Interaction of Hyaluronan with Proteins and Inflammatory Mediators

1.8 Hyaluronan and Its Derivatives in Use

1.9 Concluding Remarks

Acknowledgements

References

Chapter 2: Polysaccharide Graft Copolymers – Synthesis, Properties and Applications

2.1 Introduction

2.2 Modification of Polysaccharides through Graft Copolymerization

2.3 Different Reaction Conditions for Graft Copolymerization

2.4 Characterization of Graft Copolymers

2.5 Properties of Polysaccharide Graft Copolymers

2.6 Applications of Modified Polysaccharides

2.7 Biodegradation Studies

2.8 Conclusion

References

Chapter 3: Natural Polysaccharides: From Membranes to Active Food Packaging

3.1 Introduction

3.2 Polysaccharide Membranes

3.3 Permselective Membranes

3.4 Ionically Conductive Membranes

3.5 Polysaccharide Membranes: Synopsis

3.6 Active Food Packaging

3.7 Antimicrobial Films

3.8 Other Developments in Active Packaging: Lipid Barrier

3.9 Food Packaging: Synopsis

3.10 Conclusion

References

Chapter 4: Starch as Source of Polymeric Materials

4.1 Introduction

4.2 Starch Structure

4.3 Non-food Application of Starch

4.4 Utilization of Starch in Plastics

4.5 Some Features of the Physical Chemistry of Thermoplastic Starch Processing

4.6 Recent Developments in Thermoplastic Starch

4.7 Reactive Extrusion

4.8 Conclusion

Acknowledgement

References

Chapter 5: Grafted Polysaccharides: Smart Materials of the Future, Their Synthesis and Applications

5.1 Introduction: Polysaccharides as a Material of the Future

5.2 Modified Polysaccharides

5.3 Characterization of Grafted Polysaccharides

5.4 Application of Grafted Polysaccharides

5.5 Conclusion

References

Chapter 6: Chitosan: The Most Valuable Derivative of Chitin

6.1 Introduction

6.2 Polysachharide

6.3 Sources of Chitin and Chitosan

6.4 Composition of Chitin, Chitosan and Cellulose

6.5 Chemical Modification of Chitin and Chitosan

6.6 Chitin – Chemical Modification

6.7 Chitosan – Chemical Modification

6.8 Depolymerization of Chitin and Chitosan

6.9 Applications of Chitin and Chitosan

6.10 Bio-medical Applications of Chitosan

6.11 Miscellaneous Applications

6.12 Antimicrobial Properties

6.13 Film-forming Ability of Chitosan

6.14 Function of Plasticizers in Film Formation

6.15 Membranes

6.16 In Wastewater Treatment

6.17 Multifaceted Derivatization Potential of Chitin and Chitosan

6.18 Conclusion

References

Part 2 Bioplastics and Biocomposites

Chapter 7: Biopolymers Based on Carboxylic Acids Derived from Renewable Resources

7.1 Introduction

7.2 Carboxylic Acids: Lactic- and Glycolic Acid

7.3 Polymerization of Lactic- and Glycolic Acids

7.4 Applications

7.5 Conclusions

References

Chapter 8: Characteristics and Applications of Poly(lactide)

8.1 Introduction

8.2 Production of PLA

8.3 Physical PLA Properties

8.4 Microstructure and Thermal Properties

8.5 Mechanical Properties of PLA

8.6 Barrier Properties of PLA

8.7 Degradation Behaviour of PLA

8.8 Processing

8.9 Applications

8.10 Conclusion

References

Chapter 9: Biobased Composites and Applications

9.1 Introduction

9.2 Biofibers: Opportunities and Limitations

9.3 Biobased Composites: An Overview

9.4 Conclusion and Future Prospects

References

Part 3 Miscellaneous Biopolymers

Chapter 10: Cassia Seed Gums: A Renewable Reservoir for Synthesizing High Performance Materials for Water Remediation

10.1 Introduction

10.2 Cassia Seed Gums Based Flocculants

10.3 Cassia Seed Gums Based Metal Sorbents

10.4 Other Grafted Cassia Seed Gums

10.5 Conclusion

References

Chapter 11: Bacterial Polymers: Resources, Synthesis and Applications

11.1 Introduction

11.2 Diverse Bacterial Species

11.3 Methods to Obtain Bacterial Polymers

11.4 Tailor-made Methods

11.5 Applications

11.6 Conclusion and Future Prospective of Bacterial Polymers

References

Chapter 12: Gum Arabica: A Natural Biopolymer

12.1 Introduction

12.2 Chemistry of Gum Arabica

12.3 Electroactivity of Gum

12.4 Method of Characterization

12.5 Electronic or Vibrational Properties

12.6 Enhancement of Electroactivity

12.7 Application Potential in Material Science

12.8 Development of Biopolymeric Solar Cells

12.9 Biomedical-like Application

12.10 Conclusion

Acknowledgements

References

Chapter 13: Gluten: A Natural Biopolymer

13.1 Introduction

13.2 Gliadins

13.3 Glutenins

13.4 LMW-GS

13.5 MALDI/MS: A New Technique Used to Analyze the Proteins in Plants

13.6 Albumins and Globulins

13.7 Wheat Gluten and Dietary Intolerance

13.8 Conclusion

References

Chapter 14: Natural Rubber: Production, Properties and Applications

14.1 Introduction

14.2 Rubber Yielding Plants

14.3 History

14.4 Plantation Rubber

14.5 Rubber Cultivation

14.6 Biosynthesis of Rubber

14.7 Chemistry of Latex

14.8 Primary Processing

14.9 Current Global Status of Production and Consumption

14.10 Properties of NR

14.11 Blends of Natural Rubber

14.12 Modified Forms of Natural Rubber

14.13 Introduction to the Manufacture of Rubber Products

14.14 Applications of Natural Rubber

14.15 Natural Rubber, a Green Commodity

14.16 Conclusions

References

Chapter 15: Electronic Structures and Conduction Properties of Biopolymers

15.1 Introduction

15.2 Electronic Conduction in Proteins

15.3 Electronic Conduction in DNA

15.4 Conclusions

References

Part 4 Biopolymers for Specific Applications

Chapter 16: Applications of Biopolymers in Agriculture with Special Reference to Role of Plant Derived Biopolymers in Crop Protection

16.1 Introduction

16.2 Biopolymers

16.3 Sources of Biopolymers

16.4 Application of biopolymers in agriculture

16.5 Seed coating for value addition

16.6 Plant Derived Biopolymers in Plant Growth Promotion

16.7 Plant Derived Biopolymers in Plant Disease Management

16.8 Integrated Use of Plant Gum Biopolymers

16.9 Transgenically Produced Biopolymers

16.10 Conclusions and Future Prospects

References

Chapter 17: Modified Cellulose Fibres as a Biosorbent for the Organic Pollutants

17.1 Introduction

17.2 Cellulose Structure

17.3 Application of Natural Lignocellulosic Materials as Adsorbents for Organic Pollutants

17.4 The Use of Modified Cellulose Fibres as a Sorbent for the Organic Pollutants Removal

17.5 Adsorption Properties of Modified Cellulose Fibres

17.6 Adsorption Isotherm Modelisation

17.7 Thermodynamic Parameters

17.8 Adsorption Kinetic Modelling

17.9 Column Studies

17.10 Column Regeneration

17.11 Investigation of Adsorption Mechanisms by Laser Induced Luminescence

17.12 Conclusion

References

Chapter 18: Polymers and Biopolymers in Pharmaceutical Technology

18.1 Introduction

18.2 Purpose of the Use of Polymers in Pharmacy and Medicine

18.3 Administration of Active Substances through the Mucosa of Body Cavities with the Help of Polymers and Biopolymers

18.4 Conclusion

References

Chapter 19: Biopolymers Employed in Drug Delivery

19.1 Introduction

19.2 The Most Studied Biopolymers in Drug Delivery

19.3 Conclusion

References

Chapter 20: Natural Polymeric Vectors in Gene Therapy

20.1 Introduction

20.2 Cationic Polymers

20.3 Natural Polymers as Nonviral Vectors in Gene Therapy

20.4 Conclusions

References

Index

Biopolymers: Biomedical and Environmental Applications

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Preface

There is currently a tremendous interest in the latest information concerning polymer related topics. Experts predict the future availability of fossil resources (oil, natural gas and coal), which are not renewable, varies between one and three generations. Keeping in mind the deteriorating environmental conditions caused by many factors including advancements in science and technology, population expansion, global warming, etc, researchers all over the world have recently focused on biopolymers from renewable resources with much success.

This book focuses on different biopolymers and their applications in various fields. It highlights recent advances in technology in many areas from chemical synthesis and biosynthesis to end-user applications. These areas have not been covered in a single book before, and include information on biopolymers from chemical and biotechnological modifications, material structures, processing, characterization, properties, and applications.

Chapters cover nearly every conceivable topic related to polysaccharides, such as biofibers, bioplastics, biocomposites, natural rubbers, proteins, gums, and bacterial polymers. Given the global context it does not seem preposterous to consider the materials discussed as the polymers of the future.

The book distills recent research conducted by the scientific community. It is arranged in four parts. Part I, Polysaccharides, covers hyaluronic acid, chitin and chitosan, starch and other natural polysaccharides. Polysaccharides have received more attention due to their numerous advantages such as their renew-ability, non-toxicity, biodegradability and ready availability. This interest has resulted in a great revolution leading to polysaccharides becoming on par with, and even superior to, synthetic materials. That is why a plethora of research studies have been undertaken to understand the potential of these natural polymers.

Hyaluronic acid is a linear polysaccharide formed from disaccharide units containing N-acetyl-D-glucosamine and glucuronic acid. Since it is present in almost all biological fluids and tissues, hyaluronic acid-based materials are very useful in biomedical applications. After cellulose, chitin is the second most abundant natural polysaccharide resource on earth. Chitin and its de-acetylated derivative chitosan are natural polymers composed of N-acetylglucosamine and glucosamine. Both chitin and chitosan have excellent properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, non-toxicity, hemostatic activity and antimicrobial activity. Chitin and its derivatives are widely used in various fields of medicine.

Polysaccharides and their graft copolymers are finding extensive applications in diversified fields. The graft copolymerized and crosslinked polysaccharides are cost effective, biodegradable and quite efficient for use in technological processes. The end products obtained have improved properties that can be used in fields such as sustained drug delivery systems, controlled release of insecticides and pesticides to protect plants in agricultural and horticultural practices, release of water for plants during drought conditions, water treatment and membrane technology. Modified polysaccharides have found applications from permselec-tive membranes to ionically conductive membranes for fuel cells.

Starch is the major carbohydrate reserve in higher plants and has been one of the materials of choice since the early days of human technology. Recently, starch gained new importance as a raw material in the production of bioplastics, in particular for use in the synthesis of monomers to produce polymers such as poly(lactic acid), and after chemical modification and thermomechanical processing, to produce the so-called thermoplastic starch.

Part II discusses bioplastics and biocomposites. One of the main environmental problems in industrial development is plastic waste and its disposal. An enormous part of scientific research has been directed towards environmentally benevolent bioplastics that can easily be degraded or bio-assimilated. High performance bio-based composites (biocomposites) are very economical and open up a wide range of applications.

Part III covers different biopolymers such as gums, proteins, natural rubbers and bacterial polymers and some of their applications. The genus Cassia has been the centre of attraction for many phytochemists throughout the world, especially in Asia. Cassia plants are a known source of seed gums which are usually galac-tomannans having close structural resemblance to many of the commercial seed gums, such as guar and locust bean gums, and are considered as non-conventional renewable reservoirs for the galactomannan seed gums. Thus, properties of Cassia seed gums in general can be tailored by chemical modification whereupon they can be exploited as useful dye flocculants and heavy metal adsorbents depending upon their solubility in water. Though galactomannans from Cassia seeds are nonionic polysaccharides, their adsorption performance is comparable with that of chitin and chitosan, and superior to other polysaccharides.

Gum Arabica is a natural plant gum that exudates a carbohydrate type and is an electroactive biopolymer. Gum Arabica and its complexes have potential applications in developing ionic devices such as batteries, sensors, bio-sensors, and other electronic applications, in addition to solar material, energy storage material and nanoscience. Biopolymers obtained from bacteria are rapidly emerging because they are biodegradable and available in abundance. Simple methods are being developed to grow and harvest the polymers to exploit them for numerous industrial and biomedical applications. Electronic structures and conduction properties of biopolymers are also discussed in Part III.

Part IV includes applications of various biopolymers such as seed coating to protect against biotic stress, biosorbent for the organic pollutant, pharmaceutical technology, drug delivery, and gene therapy.

Discussions in this book regarding the very important issues and topics related to biopolymers should be useful to those in the scientific community such as, scientists, academicians, research scholars, polymer engineers and specialists in other industries. The book also acts as a support for undergraduate and postgraduate students in the institutes of polymer and technology and other technical institutes. We hope it will be an exceptional book with important contributions from well-known experts from all over the world.

Both Editors would like to express their gratitude for all the excellent contributions made by the contributors to this book. We would also like to thank all who helped in the editorial work as well.

Susheel KaliaLuc AvérousApril 2011

List of Contributors

Sabrine Alila is Associate Professor in the Department of Chemistry of the University of Sfax, Tunisia. Her research topic is concerned with surface chemical modification of cellulose fibres in order to enhance their absorption capacity toward dissolved organic pollutants, including pesticides and herbicides.

Vinita Arora is presently Assistant Professor and Research Scholar in the Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi, India. She is a MSc (Chemistry) Gold Medalist from Delhi University and her research interests include theoretical designing of novel electrically conducting polymers and biopolymers.

Marjorie S. Austero is a MS Food Science/PhD candidate in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at Drexel University, USA. She is currently working with the Natural Polymers and Photonics Groups and her current research is focused on biopolymer materials for use in filtration and active food packaging systems.

A.K.Bakhshi is presently Head, Chemistry Department, Delhi University, where he has held the prestigious Sir Shankar Lal Chair of Chemistry since 1996. A double gold medalist, Dr. Bakhshi did his post-doctoral training in Germany and Japan. He is the author/coauthor of more than 140 research and education articles, five monographs and one patent.

Antonio J. F. Carvalho received his BSc in Chemistry and PhD in Materials Science from University of Sato Paulo. He worked at the Pirelli Corporation for 10 years but later moved to a position at the Federal University of Sato Carlos and then to University of Sato Paulo. His research interests include reactive extrusion, polymers from renewable resources, and surface chemistry.

Cécile Courgneau received her MS in chemical science from National Institute of Applied Science of Rouen in 2007 and her PhD in macromolecular science from AgroParisTech, in 2011. Her research is focused on the crystallinity and the gas and organic compound transport properties of polylactide.

Dipaloy Datta is a Lecturer in Chemical Engineering at the Birla Institute of Technology in India. His research interests includes separation in biotechnology, polymer technology, liquid-liquid equilibrium and, modeling & simulation.

Tereza Dekova is an Assistant Professor of Genetics at Sofia University, Bulgaria. Her interests include genetics, proteomics, cytogenetics and genomics in plants. Dr. Dekova is the author of the 25 scientific articles.

Sandra Domenek is an Associate Professor at the Graduate School AgroParisTech, Paris, France. She holds an MS in Chemical Engineering from the Technical University of Graz, Austria and a PhD in Biotechnology from SupAgro Montpellier. Her research focuses on the relationship between transport properties in polymers and microstructure applied on biobased thermoplastics.

Violette Ducruet is a Senior Scientist at the National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), in Massy, France. In 1981, she earned her PhD in Food Science. Since 1991, she works on mass transfer between food and petrochemical packaging material implying food safety and sensorial impacts. She is involved in the characterization of the structure/barrier properties relationship of biobased polymers.

István Eros is Emeritus Professor from the Institute of Pharmaceutical Technology, University of Szeged in Hungary. He has authored more than 250 English language journal articles as well as authored or edited 7 books.

Keith J. Fahnestock is a MS student in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at Drexel University.

Sutapa Ghosh has a PhD in Chemistry and works as a scientist in the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology, Hyderabad, India. She has expertise on biopolymers for environmental applications.

Sevdalin Georgiev received his PhD and DSc in Genetics from Institute of Genetics from the Sofia University, Bulgaria where is now a Professor of Genetics. His research interests includes genetics and genomics in plants.

Rathna Gundloori has a PhD in Chemistry and works as a scientist in the National Chemical Laboratory, Pune, India. Her research interests are in biopolymers for biomedical and environmental applications.

Eva Hrabarová works at the Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences in Bratislava, Slovakia. Her research interests focus on the study of preparation of cellulose derivatives, characterization of pectins/pectates, hyaluronan degradation, isolation and characterization of recombinant proteins such as GFP.

B. S. Kaith is Professor & Head of the Department of Chemistry at the National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India. He has more than 80 research papers in peer-reviewed international journals and 160 research papers in the proceedings of the international and national conferences.

Susheel Kalia is Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry, Bahra University, Shimla Hills, India. He received his PhD from PTU Jalandhar and has 33 research papers to his credit in international journals along with 50 publications in proceedings of national & international conferences.

Pramendra Kumar is an Assistant Professor in the Chemistry Department at M.J.P. Rohilkhand University, Bareilly. He obtained his Master of Science from C.C.S. University, Meerut and Master of Engineering from Delhi College of Engineering. His research interests include modification of polysaccharides, synthesis of multifunctional nano materials and synthesis of nano bio-composites for their various applications e.g. water remediation, enzyme immobilization and other adsorbent applications.

Sushil Kumar is an Assistant Professor in the Chemical Engineering Department at the Birla Institute of Technology, India. He earlier worked with the Central Institute of Plastic Engineering and Technology (CIPET), Lucknow, INDIA. His research areas include process intensification, polymer technology & biopoly-mers, separation processes in biotechnology and modeling & simulation. He has 34 research publications (11 journals and 23 conferences) to his credit.

Patit P. Kundu is Professor in the Department of Polymer Science & Technology at Calcutta University, India. He obtained his PhD in 1997 from IIT, Kharagpur, India. He has 67 research papers to his credit in international journals along with ten papers in national/international conferences, contributed 2 book chapters, and one patent. His research interest centers on the fields of synthesis and characterization of oil based rubber and nano-composites, microbial fuel cell, direct methanol fuel cell, microbial biodegradation of waste polyolefin film, tissue engineering and gene therapy.

Thomas Kurian is a Professor of Polymer Technology at the Department of Polymer Science and Rubber Technology, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, India. Dr. Kurian received his PhD in Rubber Technology from IIT Kharagpur.

N.M. Mathew retired as Director of the Rubber Research Institute of India in October 2006. He has published more than 100 papers and edited four books on rubber.

Hemant Mittal and Jaspreet Kaur Bhatia are research scholars in the Department of Chemistry, National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar, India.

P. L. Nayak is an eminent polymer scientist and is now the Chairman of P.L. Nayak Research Foundation, Cuttack, India. He possesses both PhD and DSc Degrees in Polymer Science and Technology. He has done extensive research work on biopolymers, polymers for biomedical applications, nanomedicine, nanobio-technology, controlled drug delivery and conducting polymers. About 80 of his students have been awarded a PhD Degree. He has published more than 400 peer reviewed research papers in international journals in various fields of Polymer Science and Technology.

Sanjay Kumar Nayak is the Professor & Chair of Laboratory for Advanced Research in Polymeric Materials (LARPM), an exclusive R&D wing of the Central Institute of Plastics Engineering & Technology (CIPET), an Academic Institution under the Dept. of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, Indian Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers. Prof Nayak has been heading the operations of 15 CIPET centres, situated at different locations in India, over the past 4 years. He has 24 years of research experience in the areas of polymer composites, nanocomposites, blends & alloys, recycling technologies & biopolymers. Prof Nayak has delivered over 300 presentations at national & international conferences, published over 150 research papers and has been awarded 5 patents.

S.N. Lavanya completed her MSc in Botany and MPhil in Seed Technology from the University of Mysore, India and is currently working as a research fellow in the UGC sponsored project. Her research areas include lipid transfer proteins in plant defense, induced resistance in plants, biological control and isolation of biomolecules from plants and microbes.

Smita Mohanty is working as a Scientist at Laboratory for Advanced Research in Polymeric Materials (LARPM). Dr. Mohanty’s research interests include biopolymers, blend nancomposites and natural fiber based composites. She has 8 years of research experience and has 50 research publications and 5 patents to her credit. She has guided 15 Masters Thesis and 2 doctoral students.

Sagar Pal is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Applied Chemistry, Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, India. Previously he was Lecturer at Birla Institute of Technology and has worked as and R&D Scientist at Hindustan Gum & Chemicals, Ltd. in Bhiwani. His research interests are in the field of synthesis and applications of polymeric biomaterials.

Nikhil Prakash is a Lecturer in the Chemical Engineering Department at the Birla Institute of Technology, India. His research areas include polymer science and technology, kinetics of polymers and modeling & Simulation.

Niranjan Raj is working as Assistant Professor in the Department of Studies in Biotechnology, University of Mysore. He is the recipient of Paul Neergaard Gold Medal for his work in seed technology. He has more than 10 years of teaching and research experience and has published more than 35 research articles in international and national journals.

Betina Ramos graduated in Pharmacy at the Univeridade Federal de Santa Catarina, Brazil and earned her PhD in Chemistry from Université Bordeaux, France. She is the Technical Director and head of the Department of Research,. Development and Innovation at the Nanovetores company which is involved with Encapsulated High Technology. She has published 16 articles, written and translated many book chapters as well as being the inventor of 5 patents.

Debasish Sahoo is a senior lecturer in the Institute of Nanobiotechnology, Cuttack, India. He has an MSc in Biotechnology and has carried out extensive research work on biomedical applications of chitosan. He recently submitted his PhD thesis to the faculty of Biotechnology, Utkal University.

Boufi Sami is Professor at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Sfax, Tunisia. His research activities include chemical modification of cellulose and carbohydrate materials, the synthesis of functional polymer for colloidal chemistry, and the exploitation of chemically modified cellulose fibres as reusable adsorbent for dissolved organic pollutants.

Aloke Sarkar gained her PhD at the University of Calcutta. She joined the Bijoy Krishna Girls’College in 1982 and is currently Associate Professor of Physics at Jadavpur University, Kolkata. Her research interests include nanomaterials, quantum mechanics, spintronics, and bio-materials.

Kishor Sarkar is Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Polymer Science & Technology at Calcutta University, India. He obtained B. Tech. and M. Tech. degrees in Polymer Science & Technology from University of Calcutta, India in 2006 and 2008, respectively. His research interest centers on the fields of synthesis and characterization of PAMAM dendrimer, chitosan and chitosan derivatives for their application in gene therapy and waste water treatment.

Caroline L. Schauer received her BS in Chemistry from Beloit College and PhD in Chemistry from SUNY at Stony Brook. She is an Associate Professor in the Department of MSE at Drexel University and has 21 publications and 2 patents in the field of polysaccharides (out of 31 total publications).

J. Schiller is currently group leader at Leipzig University (Biophysics). His research focus is on (phospho)lipids and polysaccharides and their structural investigation by using NMR, mass spectrometry and chromatographic techniques. Dr. Schiller is the author of about 150 journal papers, reviews and contributions to books. He has about 1000 citations.

Gautam Sen received his PhD from Birla Institute of Technology, India, where he is now an Assistant Professor. His current research includes development of graft copolymer based smart materials and their futuristic applications.

Ashoke Sharon received his PhD from CDRI, Lucknow, India and then moved to Drug Discovery Group at the University of Georgia, USA for postdoctoral research on design and synthesis of new chemical entity as antiviral candidate. In 2009, he returned to India to join Birla Institute of Technology as an Assistant Professor. His current research includes in-silico simulation, molecular modeling and synthesis of nucleosides/non-nucleosides analogs towards drug discovery.

H. Shekar Shetty is leading the research work on Biology and Control of Plant Diseases at the Department of Studies in Biotechnology, University of Mysore, India. Prof. Shetty is a Fellow of Indian Academy of Sciences (FASc.,), Fellow of National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (FNAAS) and Fellow of National Academy of Sciences (FNASc). He has won many national and international prestigious awards including the International Seed Health Award by the Danish Seed Health Center in 2006. He has 338 research publications in national and international journals and has guided 40 research students for PhD.

Vandana Singh is working as Associate Professor at Department of Chemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, India. She joined the Chemistry Department as Lecturer in 1994. Her research interests are polysaccharides, polymers and polymer composites. Currently she is working on the biomemetic synthesis and applications of silica hybrids. She has over 70 international journal publications to her credit. She is Associate editor of Advanced Materials Letters, VBRI Press.

Dr. Šoltés has been employed for over 30 years at Academic Research Institutes in Bratislava, Slovakia. His research related to the polysaccharides, which started over two decades ago, resulted in patenting a novel approach “Clathrate complexes formed by hyaluronic acid derivatives and use thereof as pharmaceuticals”. His current research interests are focused on the studies of hyaluronan oxidative damage and the regulation of this process. Dr. Šoltés is the sole distinguished representative of Slovakia in the International Society for Hyaluronan Sciences. In 2007 he was named Scientist of the Year of the Slovak Republic.

J. Sudisha is working as a Scientist in the Department of Studies in Biotechnology, University of Mysore, India. He has published more than 30 research articles in reputed international and national journals and has several merits and awards to his credit including the Young Scientist award from Association of Microbiologists of India.

N. Volpi is Associate Professor in Biochemistry at the University of Modena & Reggio Emilia, Italy where he teaches biological chemistry. He has published 4 books, 130 scientific papers, 80 communications to congress and two books as the editor. His main interest is the study of complex carbohydrate macromolecules named proteoglycans and glycosaminoglycans.

Mohsineen Wazir is currently working as an Assistant Professor in Zakir Husain College, University of Delhi and is also pursuing research from the Department of Chemistry, University of Delhi. She received the UGC Research Fellowship in Science for Meritorious Students in March 2008 and the CSIR Junior Research Fellowship in June 2008. Her research interests include the development of robust optimization algorithms for the designing and theoretical investigation of biopolymers and conducting polymers.

PART 1POLYSACCHARIDES

Chapter 1

Hyaluronic Acid: A Natural Biopolymer†

J. Schiller1, N. Volpi2, E. Hrabárová3 and L. Šoltés4

1Institute of Medical Physics and Biophysics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany

2Department of Biology, Biological Chemistry Section, University of Modena & Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy

3Department of Glycochemistry, Institute of Chemistry, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia

4Department of Pharmacology of Inflammation, Institute of Experimental Pharmacology and Toxicology, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Bratislava, Slovakia

Abstract

This chapter gives a brief overview on glycosaminoglycans, with a special focus on hyaluronic acid/hyaluronan – its structure, occurrence, and function, along with its broadly enlarging applications. Hyaluronan biosynthesis, catabolism, and degradation as well as its technological input in regenerative medicine where hyaluronan is applied at viscosurgery, viscoprotection, and viscosupplementation is presented as well. Also, special interest is focused on elucidating cellular mechanisms such as the effects of chemical pathways-driven oxidative stress.

Keywords: Glycosaminoglycans, hyaluronan biosynthesis, hyaluronan catabolism, hyaluronan oxidative degradation, inflammation, inflammatory mediators, regenerative medicine

Abbreviations: BMP: bone morphogenic protein, CD: cluster of differentiation, CS: chondroitin sulfate, DFO: deferoxamine, DMF: dimethylformamide, DS: dermatan sulfate, ECM: extracellular matrix, ESR: electron spin resonance, GAG(s): glycosaminoglycan(s), GalNAc: N-acetyl-D-galactosamine, GlcA: D-glucuronic acid, Gy: gray (unit of the energy dose: J/kg), HA: hyaluronic acid (hyaluronan, hyaluronate), HAS(s): hyaluronan synthase(s), Hep: heparin, HPLC: high performance liquid chromatography, HS: heparan sulfate, HYAL(s): hyaluronidase(s), IdoA: l-iduronic acid, IFN-γ: interferon gamma, IL-1β: interleukin beta, k: second order rate constant, KS: keratan sulfate, MPO: myeloperoxidase, mRNA: messenger ribonucleic acid, MS: mass spectrometry, NADPH: nicotinamide-dinucleotide phosphate, NMR: nuclear magnetic resonance, OA: osteoarthritis, PG(s): proteoglycan(s), pKa: natural logarithm of acid/base equilibrium, PMA: phorbol-myristoyl acetate, ppm: parts per million, RA: rheumatoid arthritis, RNS: reactive nitrogen species, ROS: reactive oxygen species, SF: synovial fluid, SOD: superoxide dismutase, SPAM1: sperm adhesion molecule-1, TGF-β: transforming growth factor beta, TNB: 5-thio-2-nitrobenzoic acid, TNF-α: tumor necrosis factor alpha, UDP: uridine diphosphate

1.1 Glycosaminoglycans

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) are natural, very complex, unbranched, poly-disperse polysaccharides composed of disaccharide units of D-glucuronic acid (GlcA) or l-iduronic acid (IdoA) [keratan sulfate (KS) has galactose instead of uronic acid] linked to a D-glucosamine (GlcN) or D-galactosamine (GalN) residue (Figure 1.1). In general, GAGs are sulfated macromolecules [with the exception of hyaluronic acid (HA)] having different numbers of sulfate groups linked at different positions. They have very heterogeneous structures by considering relative molar mass, charge density and chemical properties generating various biological and pharmacological activities [1, 2]. Based on carbohydrate backbone structure, it is possible to distinguish four classes of GAGs: 1. HA, 2. KS, 3. chondroitin sulfate (CS)/dermatan sulfate (DS), and 4. heparan sulfate (HS)/heparin (Hep). HA is the only GAG containing an unmodified -acetyl-D-glucosamine (GlcNAc)-GlcA repeating unit, while the other polysaccharides are generally modified through post-biosynthetic modifications, such as the addition of -sulfo groups, C5-epimerization to form IdoA residues, and de--acetylation to produce GlcN-sulfo residues. These macro and micro modifications often play a key role in a wide variety of biological and pharmacological processes [1, 2].