chitosan

Overview

Chitosan is a cationic polysaccharide derived by deacetylation of chitin, and it is widely studied in biomedical and food-related applications because of its biocompatibility, biodegradability, mucoadhesive behavior, film-forming capacity, and ability to interact with negatively charged biological surfaces. Its protonated amino groups give it distinctive physicochemical properties that support use in drug delivery, wound dressings, hemostatic materials, tissue engineering scaffolds, antimicrobial coatings, and edible packaging.

In recent biomedical research, chitosan is often used not as a single active drug but as a functional platform that can be combined with other materials such as sodium alginate, gelatin, tannic acid, carrageenan, copper(2+), calcium, and curcumin-derived iron-doped carbon dots (FeCDs). These combinations are designed to improve adhesion, mechanical strength, controlled release, antibacterial activity, anti-inflammatory activity, and tissue regeneration. Its cationic nature also underlies applications in mucosal delivery, colon-targeted systems, and interactions with bacterial biofilms and cell membranes.

Focus of Latest Publications

Recent publications portray chitosan as a versatile biomaterial used across food preservation, oral care, wound management, drug delivery, and environmental remediation. In food chemistry studies, chitosan coatings were investigated for postharvest fruit preservation, with one report noting that chitosan coatings can suffer from poor wettability on low-surface-energy fruits, which limits preservation efficacy. To address this, researchers modulated surface tension using citral nanoemulsion. In another food-related study, chitosan/berry wax active films were developed using a Pickering emulsion strategy and enriched with carvacrol essential oil to extend meat shelf-life. Chitosan also appeared in edible casings for dry-cured sausages, where it was combined with sodium alginate and tea polyphenols to create a functional casing matrix.

In oral and dental research, chitosan was evaluated alongside propolis and theobromine for remineralisation of artificial initial carious lesions, as well as for antibacterial and anti-biofilm activity. Another study developed functionalized chitosan-based mucoadhesive buccal films for local delivery of triamcinolone acetonide to the oral mucosa, using cysteine-functionalized chitosan and maleimide-functionalized chitosan derivatives. Chitosan was also used in azithromycin-loaded composite films for oral tissue regeneration, and in an enzyme-triggered coating for peri-implantitis prevention with ciprofloxacin, reflecting its role in dental implants and localized antimicrobial delivery.

A major theme across the recent literature is chitosan-based wound care and hemostasis. One study developed a chitosan/poly(acrylic acid) composite hemostatic powder with ultrafast powder-gel transition for accelerated hemostasis and tissue regeneration. Another reported a polydopamine-chitosan thermosensitive hydrogel loaded with curcumin-derived iron-doped carbon dots (FeCDs) and mesoporous silica nanoparticles for infected wound healing. Additional wound-related systems included chitosan hydrogels loaded with copper nanoclusters and carbon dots, chitosan/solid lipid nanoparticles carrying chamomile oil against Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and multifunctional hemostatic hydrogels based on chitosan, gelatin, and sodium alginate with silver nanoparticles. These studies consistently leveraged chitosan’s gel-forming, adhesive, and antimicrobial-supporting properties.

Chitosan was also used in advanced drug delivery and regenerative medicine platforms. A thermoresponsive chitosan nanocomposite double-network hydrogel was designed for sustained tumor immunotherapy, while CD44-targeted chitosan nanoparticles were used to deliver ginsenoside Rg1 in diabetic kidney disease, with the goal of restoring mitochondrial homeostasis through AMPK/mTOR-mediated regulation of autophagy and pyroptosis. In another study, thiolated chitosan nanoparticles combined with gellan gum hydrogels improved ocular delivery of timolol maleate. Chitosan was further incorporated into halloysite nanotube/chitosan thermosensitive in situ gels for site-specific delivery of aceclofenac, and into a cyclodextrin-based deep eutectic eutectogel for glabridin delivery in diabetic wound management. These examples highlight chitosan’s role in controlled release, mucoadhesion, and local retention.

Several studies emphasized chitosan’s use in colon-targeted and intestine-directed systems. Dual-crosslinked polysaccharide microspheres incorporating chitosan were developed for curcumin delivery in ulcerative colitis treatment, taking advantage of chitosan’s colon enzymolysis targeting, mucosal adhesion, and pH-responsive controlled release characteristics. Similarly, food-derived probiotic extracellular vesicles were combined with chitosan and tannic acid as a synergistic therapeutic strategy for inflammatory bowel disease. Chitosan-coated microspheres were also used in orally administrable formulations for radiation enteritis, and chitosan/sulfated β-glucan nanoparticles were explored as cryoprotectants for Lactobacillus plantarum.

Beyond therapeutics, chitosan was used in materials science and environmental applications. A cationic chitosan/silsesquioxane hybrid cryogel was developed with antibacterial activity for efficient removal of Cr(VI), and a chitosan/oxidized sodium alginate double-network hydrogel incorporated Zn-BTC to improve mechanical properties and antibacterial performance. Chitosan was also used in supramolecular cryogels for 3D culture of mini-bone trabeculae tissue analogs, where glycinamide and phytic acid contributed to porous, compression-resistant structures. In ocular and blood-brain barrier-related research, chitosan nanoparticles were compared with PLGA nanoparticles in a dynamic in vitro blood-brain barrier model, reflecting interest in chitosan-based brain-targeted delivery.