Kinetic study of acid depolymerization of chitosan and effects of low molecular weight chitosan on erythrocyte rouleaux formation

In this study, the depolymerization of chitosan was carried out in an acetic acid aqueous solution and was followed by viscometry for molecular weight determination. It was found that the depolymerization rate increased with elevated temperatures and with high acid concentrations. Based on FTIR analysis, the chitosan was depolymerized randomly along the backbone; no other structural change was observed during the acid depolymerization process. Revealed in the TGA study, the degradation temperature and char yield of LMWCs (low molecular weight chitosan) were molecular weight dependent. The blood compatibility of LMWCs was also investigated: rouleaux formation was observed when erythrocyte contacted with LMWCs, which showed that LMWCs are able to interfere with the negatively charged cell membrane through its polycationic properties. Furthermore, as regards a kinetics investigation, the values of M_n (number-average molecular weight) were obtained from an experimentally determined relationship. The kinetics study showed that the complex salt, formed by amine on chitosan and acetic acid, acted as catalyst. Finally, the activation energy for the hydrolysis of the glycosidic linkage on chitosan was calculated to be 40 kJ/mol; the mechanism of acid depolymerization is proposed. In summary, LMWCs could be easily and numerously generated with acid depolymerization for further biological applications.