Synthesis and Utilization of Resins through Functionalization of Polysaccharide | Original Article

ABSTRACT:

In vision of quickly increasing interest in the amino polysaccharide chitin as a functional biopolymer, a recent development of basic and application studies in chitin chemistry is reviewed as well as some basic aspects of this specialty biomass resource. A special emphasis is placed on the controlled modification reactions to prepare chitin derivatives with well-defined structures and thereby to construct sophisticated molecular architecture having various superior functions. Of soluble precursors reported, A-phthaloyl-chitosan has proved particularly useful and made possible series of regioselective and quantitative substitutions thus far difficult. One of the important achievements based on this organ soluble precursor is the synthesis of non-natural branched polysaccharides that have sugar branches at a specific site of the linear chitin or chitosan backbone.