Exudate gums applications

Verbeken, D. Dierckx, S. Dewettinck. (2003). Exudate gums Occurrence, production, and applications. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, Vol.63, No. 1, (November 2003), pp. 10-21, ISSN 0175-7598. 

Several plant exudates (gums and mucilages) have been used for pharmaceutical purposes and they still find significant application. However, the production of gums is laborious and expensive and their use will probably continue to decline. 

A. Nussinovitch, Exudate gums, in Hydrocolloid Applications, Springer US, pp. 125-139,... 

The exudate gums have the advantage of having been tested by use over a long period in certain formulations and of having been approved for use in many food products, which is where they find their principal application. They do have desirable properties that make them the gums of choice in certain other products, but their use is limited by availability and cost. Substitutes for them are available. 

Naturally occurring rosins are derived from vegetable sources in the forms of exudates, i.e., gums. Rosin and rosin esters have found a number of applications within the rubber industry. Rosin acids are easily oxidised and thus it is more usual to find rosin presented to the rubber industry in a... 

Already the ancient Egyptians knew that one can keep soot particles dispersed in water when they were incubated with gum arabicum, an exudate from the stems of acaia trees, or egg white. In this way ink was made. The reason for the stabilizing effect is the steric repulsive force cause by adsorbed polymers. In the first case these are a mixture of polysaccharide and plycoprotein, in the second case it is mainly the protein albumin. Steric stabilisation of dispersions is very important in many industrial applications. Direct quantitative measurements were... 

The Analysis of Exudate Plant Gums in Their Artistic Applications An Interim Report... 

The Acacia catechu tree, which yields catechu extract or cutch, produces a gum which is yellow to dark amber in color, in tears which are sometimes as large as an inch in diameter. The gum has a sweetish taste, is ordinarily completely soluble, and forms a strong mucilage with cold water. The product is much used in India, especially in textile applications as a substitute for the normal gum arabic. Some of the exudations of the tree reach the normal commercial markets, but largely as an admixture in the East Indian gum. 

Gum Arabica is a natural plant gum that exudates a carbohydrate type and is an electroactive biopolymer. Gum Arabica and its complexes have potential applications in developing ionic devices such as batteries, sensors, bio-sensors, and other electronic applications, in addition to solar material, energy storage material and nanoscience. Biopolymers obtained from bacteria are rapidly emerging because they are biodegradable and available in abundance. Simple methods are being developed to grow and harvest the polymers to exploit them for numerous industrial and biomedical applications. Electronic structures and conduction properties of biopolymers are also discussed in Part III. 

Natural thickeners can be defined as products obtained from natural sources such as plants, seeds, seaweeds and microorganisms. These products are high molecular weight polymers composed of polysaccharides and are often referred to as hydrocolloids. Production processes vary from simple collection of tree exudates and milling in the case of gum arabic to more complex production by fermentation as in the case of xanthan gum. A number of these natural thickeners are also derivatised in order to modify their properties. Table 2.1 provides a simple classification of these products by source. Tables 2.2-2.4 provide an overview of the main natural thickening agents and their applications. A brief description of each class of hydro colloids is given below but for more detailed information on each of the hydrocolloids there are a number of publications available [ 1—3]. 

The bark exudes a clear, bright, amber-colored gum, known as the East India gum. The gum is a stimulant, demulcent, and tonic and is useful in catarrhal and other infections. The oil is used in some chronic skin diseases and ulcers. It is a common external application for rheumatism, leprosy, and sprain. The warm oil relieves ear trouble the oil also cures dental and gum troubles. A few drops of oil taken in betel leaf provide relief in asthma. The oil is reported to have antifertility properties. It possesses antiseptic and antifungal activity and is found to be active against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative organisms. Leaves are used for skin disorders. Nimbin has been found to be antipyretic and nonirritant. 

All microbial gums have been intensively examined for food and nonfood applications. This know-how represents a high biotechnological production potential, which will become important if other resources such as land plant gums, exudate... 

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