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Chemical Reviews Jul 2022Chitin, a fascinating biopolymer found in living organisms, fulfills current demands of availability, sustainability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, functionality,... (Review)
Review
Chitin, a fascinating biopolymer found in living organisms, fulfills current demands of availability, sustainability, biocompatibility, biodegradability, functionality, and renewability. A feature of chitin is its ability to structure into hierarchical assemblies, spanning the nano- and macroscales, imparting toughness and resistance (chemical, biological, among others) to multicomponent materials as well as adding adaptability, tunability, and versatility. Retaining the inherent structural characteristics of chitin and its colloidal features in dispersed media has been central to its use, considering it as a building block for the construction of emerging materials. Top-down chitin designs have been reported and differentiate from the traditional molecular-level, bottom-up synthesis and assembly for material development. Such topics are the focus of this Review, which also covers the origins and biological characteristics of chitin and their influence on the morphological and physical-chemical properties. We discuss recent achievements in the isolation, deconstruction, and fractionation of chitin nanostructures of varying axial aspects (nanofibrils and nanorods) along with methods for their modification and assembly into functional materials. We highlight the role of nanochitin in its native architecture and as a component of materials subjected to multiscale interactions, leading to highly dynamic and functional structures. We introduce the most recent advances in the applications of nanochitin-derived materials and industrialization efforts, following green manufacturing principles. Finally, we offer a critical perspective about the adoption of nanochitin in the context of advanced, sustainable materials.
Topics: Biopolymers; Chitin; Nanostructures
PubMed: 35653785
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.2c00125 -
International Journal of Pharmaceutics Apr 2020Bacterial levan is a fructose homopolymer that offers great potential in biotechnological applications due to biocompatibility, biodegradability and non-toxicity. This... (Review)
Review
Bacterial levan is a fructose homopolymer that offers great potential in biotechnological applications due to biocompatibility, biodegradability and non-toxicity. This biopolymer possesses diverse multifunctional features, which translates into a wide range of applicability, including in industry, consumer products, pharmaceuticals and biomedicine. Extensive research has identified great potential for its exploitation in human health. In addition, nanostructured systems have provided significant advances in the area of health, mainly with respect to disease diagnosis and treatment. While the functional properties of these natural polysaccharide-based polymers are desirable in these systems, research in this area has been limited to few natural polymers, such as chitosan, alginate and dextran, which obscures the true potential of levan in the production of nanostructured systems for biotechnological and medical applications. The present review considers the latest research in the field to focus on the use of levan as a promising biopolymer for the development of nanomaterials.
Topics: Alginates; Biocompatible Materials; Biopolymers; Chitosan; Drug Delivery Systems; Fructans; Humans; Nanostructures; Polymers; Polysaccharides
PubMed: 32199961
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2020.119242 -
Journal of Nanobiotechnology Jun 2022With rich carboxyl groups in the side chain, biodegradable polymalic acid (PMLA) is an ideal delivery platform for multifunctional purposes, including imaging diagnosis... (Review)
Review
With rich carboxyl groups in the side chain, biodegradable polymalic acid (PMLA) is an ideal delivery platform for multifunctional purposes, including imaging diagnosis and targeting therapy. This polymeric material can be obtained via chemical synthesis, or biological production where L-malic acids are polymerized in the presence of PMLA synthetase inside a variety of microorganisms. Fermentative methods have been employed to produce PMLAs from biological sources, and analytical assessments have been established to characterize this natural biopolymer. Further functionalized, PMLA serves as a versatile carrier of pharmaceutically active molecules at nano scale. In this review, we first delineate biosynthesis of PMLA in different microorganisms and compare with its chemical synthesis. We then introduce the biodegradation mechanism PMLA, its upscaled bioproduction together with characterization. After discussing advantages and disadvantages of PMLA as a suitable delivery carrier, and strategies used to functionalize PMLA for disease diagnosis and therapy, we finally summarize the current challenges in the biomedical applications of PMLA and envisage the future role of PMLA in clinical nanomedicine.
Topics: Biopolymers; Fermentation; Malates; Nanomedicine; Polymers
PubMed: 35729582
DOI: 10.1186/s12951-022-01497-4 -
Environmental Science and Pollution... Sep 2021Biopolymer-based flocculants have become a potential substitute for inorganic coagulants and synthetic organic flocculants due to their wide natural reserves,... (Review)
Review
Biopolymer-based flocculants have become a potential substitute for inorganic coagulants and synthetic organic flocculants due to their wide natural reserves, environmental friendliness, easy natural degradation, and high material safety. In recent years, with more and more attention to clean technologies, a lot of researches on the modification and application of biopolymer-based flocculants have been carried out. The present paper reviews the latest important information about the base materials of biopolymer-based flocculants, including chitosan, starch, cellulose, and lignin etc. This review also highlights the various modification methods of these base materials according to reaction types in detail. Via the recent researches, the flocculation mechanisms of biopolymer-based flocculants, such as adsorption, bridging, charge neutralization, net trapping, and sweeping, as well as, some other special mechanisms are comprehensively summarized. This paper also focuses on the water treatment conditions, the removal efficiency, and advantages of biopolymer-based flocculants in applications. Further, this review sheds light on the future perspectives of biopolymer-based flocculants, which may make progress in the sources of base materials, modification processes, multi-function, and deepening application researches. We believe that this review can guide the further researches and developments of biopolymer-based flocculants in the future, to develop them with a higher efficiency, a lower cost, more safety, and multi-function for more diversified applications. Graphical abstract.
Topics: Adsorption; Chitosan; Flocculation; Starch; Water Purification
PubMed: 34263401
DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-15299-y -
ACS Applied Bio Materials Jan 2021Polymeric biomaterials have been used in a variety of applications, like cargo delivery and tissue scaffolding, because they are easily synthesized and can be adapted to... (Review)
Review
Polymeric biomaterials have been used in a variety of applications, like cargo delivery and tissue scaffolding, because they are easily synthesized and can be adapted to many systems. However, there is still a need to further enhance and improve their functions to progress their use in the biomedical field. A promising solution is to modify the polymer surfaces with peptides that can increase biocompatibility, cellular interactions, and receptor targeting. In recent years, peptide modifications have been used to overcome many challenges to polymer biomaterial development. This review discusses recent progress in developing peptide-modified polymers for therapeutic applications including cell-specific targeting and tissue engineering. Furthermore, we will explore some of the most frequently studied base components of these biomaterials.
Topics: Animals; Antigen-Presenting Cells; Biopolymers; Brain; Brain Neoplasms; Humans; Nanoparticles; Peptides; Tissue Engineering; Tissue Scaffolds
PubMed: 34250454
DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.0c01145 -
Chemical Reviews Sep 2021Biopolymers are natural polymers sourced from plants and animals, which include a variety of polysaccharides and polypeptides. The inclusion of biopolymers into... (Review)
Review
Biopolymers are natural polymers sourced from plants and animals, which include a variety of polysaccharides and polypeptides. The inclusion of biopolymers into biomedical hydrogels is of great interest because of their inherent biochemical and biophysical properties, such as cellular adhesion, degradation, and viscoelasticity. The objective of this Review is to provide a detailed overview of the design and development of biopolymer hydrogels for biomedical applications, with an emphasis on biopolymer chemical modifications and cross-linking methods. First, the fundamentals of biopolymers and chemical conjugation methods to introduce cross-linking groups are described. Cross-linking methods to form biopolymer networks are then discussed in detail, including (i) covalent cross-linking (e.g., free radical chain polymerization, click cross-linking, cross-linking due to oxidation of phenolic groups), (ii) dynamic covalent cross-linking (e.g., Schiff base formation, disulfide formation, reversible Diels-Alder reactions), and (iii) physical cross-linking (e.g., guest-host interactions, hydrogen bonding, metal-ligand coordination, grafted biopolymers). Finally, recent advances in the use of chemically modified biopolymer hydrogels for the biofabrication of tissue scaffolds, therapeutic delivery, tissue adhesives and sealants, as well as the formation of interpenetrating network biopolymer hydrogels, are highlighted.
Topics: Animals; Biopolymers; Cell Adhesion; Hydrogels; Polysaccharides; Tissue Scaffolds
PubMed: 33356174
DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.0c00923 -
Bioresource Technology Jan 2022The era for eco-friendly polymers was ushered by the marine plastic menace and with the discovery of emerging pollutants such as micro-, nano-plastics, and plastic... (Review)
Review
The era for eco-friendly polymers was ushered by the marine plastic menace and with the discovery of emerging pollutants such as micro-, nano-plastics, and plastic leachates from fossil fuel-based polymers. This review investigates algae-derived natural, carbon neutral polysaccharides and polyesters, their structure, biosynthetic mechanisms, biopolymers and biocomposites production process, followed by biodegradability of the polymers. The review proposes acceleration of research in this promising area to address the need for eco-friendly polymers and to increase the cost-effectiveness of algal biorefineries by coupling biofuel, high-value products, and biopolymer production using waste and wastewater-grown algal biomass. Such a strategy improves overall sustainability by lowering costs and carbon emissions in algal biorefineries, eventually contributing towards the much touted circular, net-zero carbon future economies. Finally, this review analyses the evolution of citation networks, which in turn highlight the emergence of a new frontier of sustainable polymers from algae.
Topics: Biofuels; Biomass; Biopolymers; Carbon; Microalgae
PubMed: 34822992
DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2021.126397 -
Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) Aug 2021Synthetic dyes have become an integral part of many industries such as textiles, tannin and even food and pharmaceuticals. Industrial dye effluents from various dye... (Review)
Review
Synthetic dyes have become an integral part of many industries such as textiles, tannin and even food and pharmaceuticals. Industrial dye effluents from various dye utilizing industries are considered harmful to the environment and human health due to their intense color, toxicity and carcinogenic nature. To mitigate environmental and public health related issues, different techniques of dye remediation have been widely investigated. However, efficient and cost-effective methods of dye removal have not been fully established yet. This paper highlights and presents a review of recent literature on the utilization of the most widely available biopolymers, specifically, cellulose, chitin and chitosan-based products for dye removal. The focus has been limited to the three most widely explored technologies: adsorption, advanced oxidation processes and membrane filtration. Due to their high efficiency in dye removal coupled with environmental benignity, scalability, low cost and non-toxicity, biopolymer-based dye removal technologies have the potential to become sustainable alternatives for the remediation of industrial dye effluents as well as contaminated water bodies.
Topics: Chitosan; Coloring Agents; Humans; Textile Industry; Waste Disposal, Fluid; Water Pollutants, Chemical
PubMed: 34361855
DOI: 10.3390/molecules26154697 -
Marine Drugs Aug 2021Biopolymers are very favorable materials produced by living organisms, with interesting properties such as biodegradability, renewability, and biocompatibility.... (Review)
Review
Biopolymers are very favorable materials produced by living organisms, with interesting properties such as biodegradability, renewability, and biocompatibility. Biopolymers have been recently considered to compete with fossil-based polymeric materials, which rase several environmental concerns. Biobased plastics are receiving growing interest for many applications including electronics, medical devices, food packaging, and energy. Biopolymers can be produced from biological sources such as plants, animals, agricultural wastes, and microbes. Studies suggest that microalgae and cyanobacteria are two of the promising sources of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs), cellulose, carbohydrates (particularly starch), and proteins, as the major components of microalgae (and of certain cyanobacteria) for producing bioplastics. This review aims to summarize the potential of microalgal PHAs, polysaccharides, and proteins for bioplastic production. The findings of this review give insight into current knowledge and future direction in microalgal-based bioplastic production considering a circular economy approach. The current review is divided into three main topics, namely (i) the analysis of the main types and properties of bioplastic monomers, blends, and composites; (ii) the cultivation process to optimize the microalgae growth and accumulation of important biobased compounds to produce bioplastics; and (iii) a critical analysis of the future perspectives on the field.
Topics: Animals; Biodegradation, Environmental; Biopolymers; Microalgae; Plastics
PubMed: 34436305
DOI: 10.3390/md19080466 -
International Journal of Molecular... Dec 2023In recent years, significant progress has been made in the design and development of biopolymer-based delivery systems for a wide range of applications, including cancer...
In recent years, significant progress has been made in the design and development of biopolymer-based delivery systems for a wide range of applications, including cancer therapy, gene editing, regenerative medicine, and vaccine delivery [...].
Topics: Pharmaceutical Preparations; Biopolymers; Drug Delivery Systems; Regenerative Medicine
PubMed: 38069419
DOI: 10.3390/ijms242317099