Chitin molecular weight

It is worth pointing out that, besides o-sorbitol 19 and D-mannitol 36, other low-molecular weight building blocks have been already obtained on the ton-scale from low cost or waste polymeric carbohydrates (starch, cellulose, hemicellulose, chitin) [80, 81]. Most of these compounds are densely functionalized enantiopure molecules that can be easily converted into high-value added products, including chiral ionic liquids. Therefore, further studies are required to develop other synthetic approaches to environmentally sustainable ionic liquids based on renewable raw materials. 

Chitin is classically a linear polymer of /3-d-(1 - 4)-linked 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-D-glucosyl residues. However, after comparing chitin isolated from different sources, it became evident that substantial variations in solubility, molecular weight, acetyl values, and specific rotation occur among samples. It would appear that chitin is not a single, polymeric entity, but rather, a family of closely related products derived from natural chitin-protein complexes.209... 

High-molecular-weight solid substrates such as hide powder azure, and cellulose, chitin, and agar stained with remazol brilliant blue R have been used in enzyme assays to investigate activities in extracts from sediments (Reichardt, 1986). This technique is one of the few means of examining the particle — dissolved transition in relationship to sedimentary enzyme activity, but the necessity of extracting enzymes from sediments complicates interpretation of the results, because extraction efficiency, as well as the... 

Amino sugars usually contain D-glu-cosamine (2-deoxy-2-amino glucose). They occur as components of high molecular weight compounds such as the chitin of crustaceans and mollusks, as well as in certain mushrooms and in combination with the ovomucin of egg white. 

---