title: Chitin-glucan complex production by Komagataella pastoris: Downstream optimization and product characterization.
abstract: Purified chitin-glucan complex (CGCpure) was extracted from Komagataella pastoris biomass using a hot alkaline treatment, followed by neutralization and repeated washing with deionized water. The co-polymer thus obtained had a β-glucan:chitin molar ratio of 75:25 and low protein and inorganic salts contents (3.0 and 0.9 wt%, respectively). CGCpure had an average molecular weight of 4.9 × 10(5)Da with a polydispersity index of 1.7, and a crystallinity index of 50%. Solid-state NMR provided structural insight at the co-polymer. X-ray diffraction suggests that CGCpure has α-chitin in its structure. CGCpure presented an endothermic decomposition peak at 315°C, assigned to the degradation of the saccharide structures. This study revealed that K. pastoris CGC has properties similar to other chitinous biopolymers and may represent an attractive alternative to crustacean chitin derived-products, being a reliable raw material for the development of new/improved pharmaceutical, cosmetic or food products.
authors.affiliation: UCIBIO-REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: isf17210@campus.fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Inês
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Farinha
authors.affiliation: CENIMAT/I3N, Departamento de Ciência dos Materiais, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa and CEMOP-UNINOVA, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: paulo.duarte.neves@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Paulo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Duarte
authors.affiliation: CENIMAT/I3N, Departamento de Ciência dos Materiais, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa and CEMOP-UNINOVA, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: acgp@campus.fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pimentel
authors.affiliation: Interfacultary Research Centre of Biomaterials (CEIB), University of Liège, B-4000 Liège, Belgium. Electronic address: janepostbox@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Evgeniya
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Plotnikova
authors.affiliation: UCIBIO-REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: bf.chagas@campus.fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Bárbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chagas
authors.affiliation: CICECO, Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal. Electronic address: lmafra@ua.pt.
authors.forename: Luís
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mafra
authors.affiliation: Interfacultary Research Centre of Biomaterials (CEIB), University of Liège, B-4000 Liège, Belgium. Electronic address: C.Grandfils@ulg.ac.be.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Grandfils
authors.affiliation: UCIBIO-REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: a4406@fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Filomena
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Freitas
authors.affiliation: CENIMAT/I3N, Departamento de Ciência dos Materiais, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa and CEMOP-UNINOVA, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: emf@fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Elvira
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Fortunato
authors.affiliation: UCIBIO-REQUIMTE, Departamento de Química, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Campus de Caparica, 2829-516 Caparica, Portugal. Electronic address: amr@fct.unl.pt.
authors.forename: Maria A M
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Reis
mesh_terms: D018533:Biomass; D001704:Biopolymers / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D002686:Chitin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D005936:Glucans / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D008970:Molecular Weight; D010843:Pichia / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D001704:Biopolymers; D005936:Glucans; D002686:Chitin
keywords: Chitin–glucan complex (CGC); Komagataella pastoris; Molecular weight; Structural analysis; Thermal properties