Modern Biopolymer Science

Industrialists developing new food and pharmaceutical products face the challenge of innovation in an increasingly competitive market that must consider incredient cost, product added-value, expectations of a healthy life-style, improved sensory impact, controlled delivery of active compounds and last, but not lease, product stability. While much work has been done to explore, understand, and address these issues, a gap has emerged between recent advances in fundamental knowledge and its direct application to product situations with a growing need for scientific input. Modern Biopolymer Science matches science to application by first acknowledging the differing viewpoints between those working with low-solids and those working with high-solids, and then sharing the expertise of those two camps under a unified framework of materials science. * Real-world utilisation of fundamental science to achieve breakthroughs in product development * Includes a wide range of related aspects of low and high-solids systems for foods and pharmaceuticals * Covers more than bio-olymer science in foods by including biopolymer interactions with bioactive compounds, issues of importance in drug delivery and medicinal chemistry

Research into plant biopolymers, their structural characteristics and related physicochemical and functional properties is of increasing significance in the modern world. This is particularly true in relation to sustainable agriculture, environmentally friendly processes and new technology requirements and safe products. This unique book reports on the very latest research on plant biopolymer science, from biosynthesis through to applications. It describes specifically developments in the study of the biosynthesis of macromolecules and biopolymer design, going on to model systems such as biopolymer assemblies, interfaces and interphases. Finally, a discussion of multiphasic systems shows how these concepts may be extended to everyday applications. With contributions drawn from the international scientific community, Plant Biopolymer Science: Food and Non-Food Applications provides an overview of the state-of-the-art for a variety of readers, which will include students, researchers and teachers in academia to professionals in industry and government agencies.

Biopolymer Science for Proteins and Peptides introduces all aspects of natural polymers based on structural proteins and peptides, presenting synthesis, structure, properties, proteins, materials design, and applications. The book begins by presenting the core concepts of polypeptide and protein materials, before discussing synthesis and structure in detail. The next part of the book describes physical properties, biological properties, and issues surrounding stability. Subsequent chapters offer in-depth coverage of both natural and structural protein sources, including collagen, silk, elastin, resilin, keratin, foot protein, and reflectin, and the materials that can be designed from them, such as films, fibers, textiles, microparticles, sponges and scaffolds, nanomaterials, blends, and composites. These materials are also analyzed against the available synthetic polymers. Finally, the text explores current applications and potential future developments. This is an essential resource for researchers and advanced students across a range of disciplines, including biopolymers, structural proteins, polymer science, materials science, biomaterials, biology, biotechnology, chemistry, engineering, and pharmaceutical science. In an industry setting, this is of great interest to scientists and R&D professionals working in industries with an interest in bio-based polymers for advanced applications. Explains how biopolymers from structural proteins and peptides can be developed into materials, such as films, fibers, textiles, microparticles, sponges and scaffolds, nanomaterials, blends, and polymer composites Provides the reader a solid understanding of the structure, synthesis, and properties Guides the reader from sources, including collagen, silk, elastin, resilin, keratin, and reflectin, to material design and cutting-edge applications

With the growing concern for the environment and the rising price of crude oil, there is increasing demand for non-petroleum-based polymers from renewable resources. Biopolymer films have been regarded as potential replacements for synthetic films in food packaging due to a strong marketing trend toward environmentally friendly materials. Biopolymer-based films and coatings display good barrier properties, flexibility, transparency, economic profitability, and environmental compatibility. Therefore, they have successfully been used for packaging various food products. Biopolymer-Based Films and Coatings: Trends and Challenges elaborates on the recent methods and ingredients for making biodegradable films and coatings, as well as the current requirements for food security and environmental issues. This book also explores films and coatings prepared with essential oils, antimicrobial substances, and bioactive components that make up this active packaging. Films and coating chapters are based on biopolymers used to prepare films and coatings, that is, carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and so on. This book provides a platform for researchers and industrialists on the basic and advanced concepts of films and coatings. Key Features Provides a comprehensive analysis of recent findings on biopolymers (carbohydrate-, protein-, and lipid-) based films and coatings Contains a wealth of new information on the properties, functionality, and applications of films and coatings Presents possible active and functional components and ingredients for developing films and coatings. Guides start-up researchers on where to start the latest research work in packaging It has been estimated that the global production of bioplastics is set to hike from ~2.11 in 2020 to ~2.87 million tonnes in 2025. Further, the demand for fresh, ready-to-eat, or semi-finished foods is increasing, and the need to maintain food safety and quality further exacerbates the challenges in the supply chain, especially with the globalization of food trade and the use of centralized processing facilities for food distribution. It is an urgent requirement to increase shelf life and reduce food product loss. Considering the great market demand for biodegradable material-based packaging systems, this book comes at an opportune time to enable researchers and food scientists to develop suitable solutions considering the sustainability and economic feasibility of the process.

Modern Methods for Theoretical Physical Chemistry of Biopolymers provides an interesting selection of contributions from an international team of researchers in theoretical chemistry. This book is extremely useful for tackling the complicated scientific problems connected with biopolymers' physics and chemistry. The applications of both the classical molecular-mechanical and molecular-dynamical methods and the quantum chemical methods needed for bridging the gap to structural and dynamical properties dependent on electron dynamics are explained. Also included are ways to deal with complex problems when all three approaches need to be considered at the same time. The book gives a rich spectrum of applications: from theoretical considerations of how ATP is produced and used as ‘energy currency’ in the living cell, to the effects of subtle solvent influence on properties of biopolymers and how structural changes in DNA during single-molecule manipulation may be interpreted. · Presents modern successes and trends in theoretical physical chemistry/chemical physics of biopolymers · Topics covered are of relevant importance to rapidly developing areas in science such as nanotechnology and molecular medicine · Quality selection of contributions from renowned scientists in the field

This book includes papers on polymeric materials from renewable resources known as `Biorelated Polymers and Plastics', and issues are bound to their utilization and environmental impact in their production, conversions to manufacts and ultimate disposal of post-costume manufacts. Modern industrial developments inspired by the new concepts of sustainability and ecocompatibility require a deeper attention to renewable resources as a new-old source of raw material and feedback. This new trend, occurring not only in industrialized countries but also in emerging countries and countries in transition, thoroughly permeates the polymer and plastic industry, due to the big impact that those materials have on the modern way of life. Plastic waste, specifically that stemming from segments of packaging, containers for solids and liquids and single use items, is attracting much effort from municipality officers, producers and converters, aimed at finding a harmonized solution among the various options available for their appropriate management. In this respect, polymeric materials of natural origin (biopolymers), as well as materials from renewable resources useable for the production of monomeric precursors, or semi-synthetic polymeric materials, constitute a focal point for future industrial development in the production of polymers and plastics. The present book contains much valuable information and scientific hints on a modern approach aimed at designing processes and products with minimal negative environmental impact.

Biopolymer-Based Formulations: Biomedical and Food Applications presents the latest advances in the synthesis and characterization of advanced biopolymeric formulations and their state-of-the-art applications across biomedicine and food science. Sections cover the fundamentals, applications, future trends, environmental, ethical and medical considerations, and biopolymeric architectures that are organized in nano, micro and macro scales. The final section of the book focuses on novel applications and recent developments. This book is an essential resource for researchers, scientists and advanced students in biopolymer science, polymer science, polymer chemistry, polymer composites, plastics engineering, biomaterials, materials science, biomedical engineering, and more. It will also be of interest to R&D professionals, scientists and engineers across the plastics, food, biomedical and pharmaceutical industries. Provides in-depth coverage of methods for the characterization of the physical properties of biopolymeric architectures Supports a range of novel applications, including scaffolds, implant coatings, drug delivery, and nutraceutical encapsulation systems Includes the use of experimental data and mathematical modeling, thus enabling the reader to analyze and compare the properties of different polymeric gels

This handbook focuses on biopolymers for both environmental and biomedical applications. It shows recent advances in technology in all areas from chemical synthesis or biosynthesis to end use applications. These areas have not been covered in a single book before and they include biopolymers for chemical and biotechnological modifications, material structures, characterization, processing, properties, and applications. After the introduction which summarizes the importance of biopolymer in the market, the book covers almost all the topics related to polysaccharides, biofibers, bioplastics, biocomposites, natural rubber, gums, bacterial and blood compatible polymers, and applications of biopolymers in various fields.