Biological, mechanical, optical and physicochemical properties of natural chitin films obtained from the dorsal pronotum and the wing of cockroach

Murat Kaya*, Idris Sargin, Ignas Sabeckis, Deimante Noreikaite, Demet Erdonmez, Asier M. Salaberria, Jalel Labidi, Vykintas Baublys, Vaida Tubelytė

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

36 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

In previous studies, chitin-based films were produced from chitin nanofibers in dust form and fully characterized. However, chitin films naturally present in many organisms have not been isolated and characterized. Herein, structurally intact chitin films were successfully extracted from the dorsal pronotum and the wing of cockroach. Despite using the same extraction procedure, important differences were observed. Especially, hydrophobicity, transparency, antifungal and antibacterial biofilm activities of wing chitin film were recorded notably higher than those of chitin film from the dorsal pronotum. However, better mechanical properties were observed for chitin film from the dorsal pronotum. Notably, among the tested bacteria, two common pathogens could not form biofilms on the surface of the films. This study clearly demonstrated natural chitin films obtained from an insect can provide a new perspective to chitin-based applications where chitin films with high thermal stability, transparency, resistance to bacterial biofilm formation and antifungal activity are needed.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)162-169
Number of pages8
JournalCarbohydrate Polymers
Volume163
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 May 2017
Externally publishedYes

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd

Keywords

  • Antimicrobial
  • Biodegradable film
  • Blaberus giganteus
  • Hydrophobicity

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