Diffusion characteristics of calcium alginate gels.
The diffusivity of a protein solute (bovine serum albumin) within calcium alginate gels made from sodium alginate of different guluronic acid content was determined. It was found that protein diffusion within alginate gels, prepared to be isotropic in structure, was greatest for gels prepared from sodium alginate of low guluronic acid content as opposed to those prepared from sodium alginate of high guluronic acid content. This finding was explained in terms of the difference in flexibility of the polymer backbone of the two alginates. The greater the polymer backbone flexibility, the greater the solute diffusivity within the gel.
Amsden
B
B
Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6G 2N8. bamsden@pharmacy.ualberta.ca
Turner
N
N
D000464:Alginates / Q000737:chemistry; D000818:Animals; D002240:Carbohydrate Sequence; D002417:Cattle; D004058:Diffusion; D020723:Glucuronic Acid; D006603:Hexuronic Acids / Q000737:chemistry; D020100:Hydrogels; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine
D000464:Alginates; D006603:Hexuronic Acids; D020100:Hydrogels; C007896:guluronic acid; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D020723:Glucuronic Acid