Biomedical applications of chitin and chitosan based nanomaterials—A short review

• Published in: Carbohydrate polymers Vol. 82; no. 2; pp. 227 - 232
• Main Authors: Jayakumar, R., Menon, Deepthy, Manzoor, K., Nair, S.V., Tamura, H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 05-09-2010; Elsevier
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Biological and medical sciences; Cancer diagnosis; Chitin; Chitosan; Drug delivery; Exact sciences and technology; General pharmacology; Medical sciences; Nanocomposite scaffolds; Nanofibers; Nanoparticles; Natural polymers; Pharmaceutical technology. Pharmaceutical industry; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Physicochemistry of polymers; Starch and polysaccharides; Surgery (general aspects). Transplantations, organ and tissue grafts. Graft diseases; Technology. Biomaterials. Equipments; Tissue engineering; Wound healing; Nanoparticles; Wound healing; Tissue engineering; Chitin; Drug delivery; Chitosan; Nanofibers; Cancer diagnosis; Nanocomposite scaffolds; State of the art; Control release polymer; Drug carrier; Oside polymer; Biomaterial; Nanostructured materials; Medical application; Framework
• ISSN: 0144-8617; 1879-1344
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2010.04.074

Chitin and chitosan are biopolymers having immense structural possibilities for chemical and mechanical modifications to generate novel properties, functions and applications especially in biomedical area. Chitin and chitosan are effective materials for biomedical applications because of their biocompatibility, biodegradability and non-toxicity, apart from their antimicrobial activity and low immunogenicity, which clearly points to an immense potential for future development. These candidate biopolymers can be easily processed into gels, sponges, membranes, beads and scaffolds forms. This review emphasizes recent research on different aspects of chitin and chitosan based nanomaterials, including the preparation and applications of chitin and chitosan based nanofibers, nanoparticles and nanocomposite scaffolds for tissue engineering, wound dressing, drug delivery and cancer diagnosis.