Chitosan News and Research

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Chitosan is a naturally occuring polymer isolated from crab and shrimp shells. Chitosan has shown promise as a carrier of anticancer drugs, antitumor genes, and other novel therapeutics.

Suramin shows promise as COVID-19 treatment

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv reports the elucidation of the mechanism of inhibition of SARS-CoV-2 by a non-nucleotide inhibitor called suramin. This is the first such compound to be shown to have such activity and shows promise for use as a repurposed drug against COVID-19.

12 Oct 2020

Researchers use silk nanofibers to enhance 3D cell printing

How do you test, in early-stage research, whether a potential pharmaceutical effectively targets a human tumor, organ, or some other part of the body? How do you grow a new hand or some other body part?

8 Oct 2020

Synthetic peptide can make multidrug-resistant bacteria sensitive to antibiotics

Scientists at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a synthetic peptide that can make multidrug-resistant bacteria sensitive to antibiotics again when used together with traditional antibiotics, offering hope for the prospect of a combination treatment strategy to tackle certain antibiotic-tolerant infections.

6 Aug 2020

Edible coating made with green tea extract kills norovirus, bacteria

Infusing prepared foods with an edible coating that contains green tea extract may lower consumers' chances of catching the highly contagious norovirus by eating contaminated food, new research suggests.

21 Jul 2020

Researchers find new strategy for developing tissue regeneration scaffolds

In Japan, an increase in the aging population has exacerbated the demand for regenerative medicine to address increasingly common diseases, such as knee osteoarthritis.

31 Mar 2020

Bandages sense infections, change color, treat infection

In what reads like science fiction, a new study published in the journal ACS Central Science reports the development of bandages that detect the presence of bacteria in wounds and change color, depending on whether they are drug-sensitive or drug-resistant. This is an important step in helping patients recover better.

29 Jan 2020

Vitamin D in pregnancy reduces risk of enamel defects in offspring

An important randomized trial shows that when vitamin D is supplemented at high doses in the last three months of pregnancy, there is a fall in the occurrence of enamel defects in the deciduous (milk) and permanent teeth of the offspring by half, over the next 6 years, compared to a low dose supplementation. However, the incidence of caries was not affected.

27 Jan 2020

Study uncovers how rice blast fungus uses its own cell wall to launch an attack

In response to environmental changes and nutrient starvation, cells are known to undergo extreme alterations. This includes switching from one type to another (“differentiation”) and changes in metabolic pathways (“metabolic switching”).

14 Jan 2020

Extremely low concentrations of acetic acid could alter cellular processes in rice blast fungus

All living organisms respond and adapt to changes in their environment. These responses are sometimes so significant that they cause alterations in the internal metabolic cycles of the organism--a process called "metabolic switching." For example, rice blast fungus--a pathogenic fungal species that causes the "rice blast" infection in rice crops--switches to the "glyoxylate cycle" when the nutrient source starts to deplete.

8 Jan 2020

University of Florida scientists aim to develop new antimicrobials for cows, humans

University of Florida scientists believe they can develop new antimicrobials that will benefit dairy cattle and, eventually, humans by treating bacteria that normally resist antibiotics.

21 Aug 2019

Encapsulated Indian medicinal herb can reduce blood glucose levels in diabetic mice

Extracts of the herb Withania coagulans, or Paneer dodi, are used in traditional Indian medicine. Although some healers claim that W. coagulans can help treat diabetes, the bitter-tasting plant hasn't been studied extensively by scientists.

31 Jul 2019

Active adhesive dressings can close wounds faster than other methods

Cuts, scrapes, blisters, burns, splinters, and punctures - there are a number of ways our skin can be broken.

25 Jul 2019

Bioinspired adhesive dressings could accelerate wound healing

Cuts, scrapes, blisters, burns, splinters, and punctures - there are a number of ways our skin can be broken. Most treatments for skin wounds involve simply placing a barrier over them (usually an adhesive gauze bandage) to keep it moist, limit pain, and reduce exposure to infectious microbes, but do not actively assist in the healing process.

25 Jul 2019

New combination method improves characterization of polysaccharides

Postnova Analytics reports on a new method for the accurate molecular weight determination of complex polysaccharides (Chitosans) using asymmetric flow field flow fractionation (AF4) coupled with multi-angle light scattering (MALS) and differential refractive index (RI) detectors.

From Postnova Analytics 16 Jul 2019

Researchers develop new method to reduce toxicity of gluten for people with celiac disease

A team of researchers from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro along with other research institutions have developed a method that will allow us to reduce the toxicity of gluten for people who suffer from celiac disease.

3 Jun 2019