Carrageenan properties

K. H. Johnston and E. L. McCandless, Enzymic hydrolysis of the potassium chloride soluble fraction of carrageenan. Properties of A-carrageenases from Pseudomonas carrageenovora, Can. J. Microbiol., 19 (1973) 779-788. 

S. Distantina, Wiratni, M. Fahrurrozi, Rochmadi, Carrageenan properties extracted from eucheuma cottonii, Indonesia, World Acad. Sci. Eng. Technol. 78 (2011) 738-742. 

A useful property of the red seaweed extracts is their abiUty to form gels with water and milk. Kappa-carrageenan reacts with milk protein micelles, particularly kappa-casein micelles. The thickening effect of kappa-carrageenan in milk is 5—10 times greater than it is in water at a concentration of 0.025% in milk, a weak thixotropic gel is formed. 

Commercial locust bean gum is the ground endosperm of the seeds of the locust bean (carob) tree. The general properties of locust bean gum are similar to those of guar gum. Differences are its low cold-water solubiUty and its synergistic gelation with kappa-carrageenan, furceUaran, and xanthan... 

Consistent with their chemical differences, the molecular structures of i- and K-carrageenans are not identical. A shorter pitch and an offset positioning of the two chains in the kappa helix is compatible with the lack of sulfate group on every 3,6-anhydrogalactose residue. The variations in molecular structures mirror the types of junction zones formed by these polymers and relate to the observed gelation properties. 

Synthetic products, e.g., polyethylene oxides(104), polyacrylates, polyacrylamides, and polyetherglycols were in competition with natural polymers like starch, guar, cellulose derivatives, alignates, carrageenan, and locust bean gum. The basic physical and structural properties of the various polysaccharide thickeners have been compiled and reviewed by numerous authors and editors(105-109). 

Caryophyllidae are an interesting source of oligosaccharides and peptides with potential anti-inflammatory and/or immunomodulating effect. These polar compounds might for instance explain the fact that the fresh juice expressed from Aerva lanata (L.) Juss. (Amaranthaceae) inhibits carrageenan-induced edema in rodent. Note that the seeds of Gomphrena species inhibit the formation of IL-6 by osteoblastic cells (MC3T3-E10) without cytotoxicity in vitro. Such property could be useful for the treatment of chronic rheumatoid arthritis, infection, and cancer. In the Lauraceae, trans-cinnamal-dehyde from Cinnamomum cassia (Lauraceae, order Laurales) inhibits in vitro the... 

Carlucci MJ, Pujol CA, Ciancia M, Noseda MD, Matulewicz MC, Damonte EB, Cerezo AS (1997) Antiherpetic and anticoagulant properties of carrageenans from the red seaweed Gigartina skottsbergii and their cyclized derivatives correlation between structure and biological activity. Int J Biol Macromol 20 97-105... 

ML Weiner. Toxicological properties of carrageenan. Agents Actions 32 46— 51, 1991. 

Hjerde, T., Smidsrad, O., Christensen, B.E. (1998a). Analysis of the conformational properties of k- and i-carrageenan by size-exclusion chromatography combined with low-angle laser light scattering. Biopolymers, 49, 71-80. 

Figure 7.20 Influence of salt content on properties of bilayer emulsions based on p-lactoglobulin + i-carrageenan at pH = 6.0 (a) zeta potential and (b) mean particle diameter The primary emulsion (open symbols) contained 5 wt% oil and 0.5 wt% protein die secondary emulsions (ftlled symbols) contained an additional 0.1 wt% polysaccharide. Reproduced from Gu el al. (2005b) with permission.

Dickinson, E., Pawlowsky, K. (1998). Influence of K-carrageenan on the properties of a protein-stabilized emulsion. Food Hydrocolloids, 12, 417 123. 

Gu, Y.S., Decker, E.A., McClements, D.J. (2005a). Influence of pH and carrageenan type on properties of p-lactoglobulin stabilized oil-in-water emulsions. Food Hydrocolloids, 19, 83-91. 

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