Pharmaceuticals, glucosamine

As populations in developed countries continue to age then arthritis will become more of a problem. There is every likelihood that the cause of this disease will be discovered in the next decade and then the research chemists in pharmaceutical companies will begin to look for drugs that can tackle it at its very early stage and even stop it happening altogether. Meanwhile there is a natural chemical which is popular with those who want to ward off arthritis and that is glucosamine, taken by millions in the belief that prevention is better than a cure. 

Y. Shao, R. Alluri, M. Mummert, U. Koetter, and S. Lech, A stability-indicating HPLC method for the determination of glucosamine in pharmaceutical formulations, J. Pharm. Biomed. Anal. 35 (2004), 625-631. 

Chitosan is a polymer of glucosamine and A-acetyl-glucosamine, obtained from crustacean shells. It has been used to lower blood lipid concentrations, for body weight reduction (26), and as an excipient in pharmaceutical formulations. 

Problems It is disrupted by high concentrations of complex-forming reagents (e.g., EDTA) and by ammonium sulfate N-acteyl-glucosamine, glycine, reducing materials such as glucose, DTT, or Sorbitol and a host of pharmaceuticals such as chlorpromazine, penicillin, and vitamin C (Marshall and Williams 1991). 

Chitin and chitosan have been recommended as potential feed and food additives because of their useful functional properties. Though officially not approved for use in foods in the U.S., some aminopolysaccharides are part of the traditional diet of Eskimos as well as being present in different Oriental foods such as tempeh, sufu and even aged beef (5). In the nonpurified form, chitin is present in oyster shell powder which is used in animal feed as a source of calcium. Glucosamine, the monomeric unit of chitosan is used extensively in oral pharmaceutical preparations. 

Seyfarth, R, Schliemann, S., Eisner, P. et al. 2008. Antifungal effects of low-molecular-weight chitosan hydrochloride, carboxymethyl chitosan, chitosan oligosaccharide andiV-acetyl-D-glucosamine against Candida albicans, Candida krusei and Candida glabrate. International Journal of Pharmaceutics 353 139-148. 

Martuuiale, The Extra Pharmacopoeia. 30th edn.. Pharmaceutical Press, 1993, 990 1374 Ghmicate, Glucosamine)... 

Chitosan, produced commercially by deacetylation of chitin, is a natural polysaccharide composed of randomly distributed (J-l, 4-linked D-glucosamine and N-acetyl-a-glucosamine. Because of its nontoxic, biocompatible, biodegradable and mucoadhesive properties, chitosan is widely used in the pharmaceutical field [171]. Chitosan has been used as a carrier system for hormones [172], proteins [173], enzymes [174], and genes [175]. Because of its apparent pKa = 5.6 [176], the application of chitosan in the oral administration of protein and peptide drugs is restricted by its easy dissolution in a low pH environment. 

Aminoarthrin Glucosamine Moscow Pharmaceutical Company (Russia) 300 mg tablets... 

Chitin (poly-A-acetyl-D-glucosamine, 2-acetamido-2-deoxy-1,4-P-D-glucan) is one of the three most abundant polysaccharides (along with starch and cellulose) and is extracted from shells of crustaceans and cell walls of fungi. Chitosan is produced by deacetylation of chitin and can be spun into fibres, cast into films, or precipitated in a variety of micro-morphologies. Major applications are in biomaterials, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, metal ion sequestration, agriculture and the food industry. ... 

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