Driving Chitin Research Through Comprehensive Characterization
CD BioGlyco offers a wide range of Marine Carbohydrate Characterization services. Due to its natural origin and excellent properties such as biocompatibility, and biodegradability, chitin is widely used in pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, etc. The physicochemical characterization of chitin plays an important role in chitin application research. We provide a comprehensive, professional, and customized chitin characterization service, and combine various advanced techniques to conduct detailed characterization of chitin to support our clients' various studies.
Chitin consists of two units and is a naturally occurring polymer with three main forms: α-chitin, β-chitin, and γ-chitin. We specialize in the extraction, purification, and characterization of chitin from different marine resources and are committed to advancing research on its biological activities and applications. Combined with advanced technology, we mainly provide the following services:
Extraction and Purification of Chitin
We extract chitin from various marine resources such as crab, shrimp, squid, etc. A variety of methods (chemical method, biological method, etc.) are available. We optimize the extraction process to ensure a high yield of chitin.
Crude extracts contain impurities such as proteins and inorganic compounds that need to be removed by different means. We purify chitin crude extract by deproteinization, dialysis, centrifugation, decolorization, sedimentation, etc.
Characterization of Chitin
We combine a variety of advanced techniques and tools to characterize chitin including analyzing its composition, structure, and properties for its use in the fields of materials science, biotechnology, and others. We have rich practical experience in Marine Animal Polysaccharide Characterization and develop detailed chitin characterization plans according to client requirements.
- Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES): It is an accurate, precise, and fast inorganic analytical technique that is used to analyze precise concentrations of most elements.
- Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR): It is a simple, fast, and widely used spectroscopic method in which each peak in the spectrum represents a specific functional group of the substance being analyzed. We use FTIR for the determination and quantitative analysis of chitin functional groups.
- Scanning electron microscope (SEM): It has many superior properties and is used to analyze the surface morphology of chitin samples.
- X-ray diffraction (XRD): It is used to analyze the structure of chitin including crystallinity and crystal structure.
- Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA): It is used to perform TGA and derivative thermogravimetry analysis (DTG) of chitin to assess its thermal stability.
- Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR): It is used to study the structure and physicochemical properties of chitin and to measure the degree of acetylation.
- Average molecular weight: We calculate the average molecular weight of chitin by relative viscosity.
- In addition to this, we analyze the biological activity and mechanical properties of chitin. We also chemically modify chitin to ensure that it supports our clients' research needs.
Delivery
- Experimental protocol for chitin characterization
- Raw chitin characterization experimental data
- Detailed analysis report of the results of chitin characterization
Publication Data
Technology: FITR, XRD, and SEM
Journal: Frontiers in Microbiology
IF: 6.064
Published: 2021
Results: In the present study, chitin was extracted from shrimp shells using a continuous two-step fermentation method and characterized to analyze the applicability of the extraction method. The method was analyzed and found to have 95±3% mineral removal, 85.9±1.2% protein removal, and 16.32% chitin yield. Characterization results using FITR, XRD, and SEM showed that the degree of deacetylation of the extracted chitin was 3.67% and the crystallinity index was 54.37%. These results showed the suitability of the designed continuous two-step fermentation method for the extraction of chitin. This study guides the development of an effective microbial fermentation method for chitin extraction and characterization of chitin.
Fig.1 SEM micrographs of chitin. (Xie, et al., 2021)
Applications
- Characterization of the composition, structure, and properties of chitin has important applications in the development of drug delivery systems.
- Characterization of the composition, structure, and properties of chitin is used to analyze its properties and its applications in, for example, tissue engineering.
- Characterization of the composition, structure, and properties of chitin plays an important role in wastewater treatment and the development of composite materials.
Advantages
- We have extensive practical experience in the characterization of marine animal polysaccharides such as chitin.
- We combine several advanced techniques to fully characterize chitin. Experimental protocols are customized according to specific requirements.
- We also provide some guidance and support for the applied research of chitin.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the correlation between structure and biological activity of chitin?
It has been found that chitin has significant biological properties such as antifungal, antioxidant, and antiviral properties. Deacetylation, molecular weight, and solubility are the main factors that affect the properties of chitin and determine its specific use. For example, low molecular weight chitin exhibits excellent antimicrobial activity. β-chitin is used for applications requiring higher molecular weight and purity.
Does protein contamination affect the results of NMR analysis of chitin?
NMR provides detailed information about the molecular structure of chitin. The presence of proteins may interfere with the NMR spectral analysis of chitin. Before characterizing chitin, it is advisable to purify the sample before analysis to remove possible protein contamination.
CD BioGlyco provides a professional, comprehensive, high-quality characterization service of chitin and supports its applied research. We put our clients' needs first and maximize our ability to meet their research needs. Welcome to contact us if you need to extract, purify, and characterize chitin.
Reference
- Xie, J.; et al. Extraction of chitin from shrimp shell by successive two-step fermentation of Exiguobacterium profundum and Lactobacillus acidophilus. Frontiers in Microbiology. 2021, 12: 677126.
