Biomedical Applications of Chitosan and Its Derivative Nanoparticles

Abstract

Chitosan is a biodegradable natural polymer with many advantages such as nontoxicity, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. It can be applied in many fields, especially in medicine. As a delivery carrier, it has great potential and cannot be compared with other polymers. Chitosan is extremely difficult to solubilize in water, but it can be solubilized in acidic solution. Its insolubility in water is a major limitation for its use in medical applications. Chitosan derivatives can be obtained by chemical modification using such techniques as acylation, alkylation, sulfation, hydroxylation, quaternization, esterification, graft copolymerization, and etherification. Modified chitosan has chemical properties superior to unmodified chitosan. For example, nanoparticles produced from chitosan derivatives can be used to deliver drugs due to their stability and biocompatibility. This review mainly focuses on the properties of chitosan, chitosan derivatives, and the origin of chitosan-based nanoparticles. In addition, applications of chitosan-based nanoparticles in drug delivery, vaccine delivery, antimicrobial applications, and callus and tissue regeneration are also presented. In summary, nanoparticles based on chitosan have great potential for research and development of new nano vaccines and nano drugs in the future.

Impact of Crystalline Structural Differences Between α- and β-Chitosan on Their Nanoparticle Formation Via Ionic Gelation and Superoxide Radical Scavenging Activities

“…(020), (110) and (120) represent the diffraction peak characteristic at 2θ ≈ 10 • , ≈20 • , and ≈21 • , respectively. It is known that the crystalline structure of chitosan is destroyed by ionic cross-linking interactions between the amino groups on chitosan and TPP [14,30]. Depolymerization reactions could have occurred favorably through the crystalline domains of the biopolymer, resulting in a decrease in the intensity of the characteristic peaks of chitosan [36].…”

“…It is known that hydroxyl, and amino groups in chitosan are key components in eliminating anion radicals such as superoxide and hydroxyl radicals [8][9][10]12] It has been reported that the amino and hydroxyl groups on chitosan backbone represent target moieties for chemical modifications to improve the aqueous solubility of chitosan since it is soluble only in an aqueous acidic solution, which is a major hurdle for its application [5]. The unique properties of chitosan, such as nontoxicity to humans [13][14][15]; commercial accessibility, biodegradability and biocompatibility [14,15], and high mucoadhesive properties [15,16] make chitosan an excellent choice for nanoparticle assembly. Chitosan-based nanoparticles are commonly obtained by ionic gelation using the multivalent ion tripolyphosphate (TPP) [14][15][16] which possesses a large number of lone-pair electrons and high binding power with materials with empty orbitals [14].…”

“…The unique properties of chitosan, such as nontoxicity to humans [13][14][15]; commercial accessibility, biodegradability and biocompatibility [14,15], and high mucoadhesive properties [15,16] make chitosan an excellent choice for nanoparticle assembly. Chitosan-based nanoparticles are commonly obtained by ionic gelation using the multivalent ion tripolyphosphate (TPP) [14][15][16] which possesses a large number of lone-pair electrons and high binding power with materials with empty orbitals [14]. Previous studies have demonstrated the effects of %DD, and MW of chitosan on the characteristics of the resulting nanoparticles [9,[17][18][19][20], such as particle size [17,19,20], zeta potential [17,19,20], and crystalline structure [19].…”

Topical Minoxidil-Loaded Nanotechnology Strategies for Alopecia

“…The formation of MXD depots is less reported for lipidic nanoparticles, which highlights the importance of nanocapsules in its targeted action enhancement in the hair follicles. Chitosan, a natural polymer derived from the chitin of crustaceans' exoskeletons, has been extensively investigated in nanotechnology due to its biological compatibility, degradability, adhesiveness and renewability [14,74]. Moreover, its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activity, along with its ability to bind with lipids, comprise important features for application in topical therapeutic treatments [75,76].…”

The determination of treatment effect of chitosan oligosaccharide in lambs with experimentally cryptosporidiosis

“…Chitosan is a natural polysaccharide produced by deacetylation of chitin. It is non-toxic, biocompatible and biodegradable (Huang et al, 2004;Zhao et al, 2018). Chitin is the main component of crustaceans (crab, shrimp, etc.…”