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Alginic acid

Names
Other names E400
Identifiers
CAS Number	9005-32-7
ChemSpider	NA
ECHA InfoCard	100.029.697
EC Number	232-680-1
E number	E400 (thickeners, ...)
UNII	8C3Z4148WZ
CompTox Dashboard (EPA)	DTXSID601010868
Properties
Chemical formula	(C6H8O6)n
Molar mass	10,000 - 600,000
Appearance	white to yellow, fibrous powder
Density	1.601 g/cm
Acidity (pKa)	1.5-3.5
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C , 100 kPa). N verify (what is  ?) Infobox references

Alginic acid, also called algin or alginate, is an anionic polysaccharide distributed widely in the cell walls of brown algae, where it, through binding water, forms a viscous gum. In extracted form it absorbs water quickly; it is capable of absorbing 200-300 times its own weight in water. Its colour ranges from white to yellowish-brown. It is sold in filamentous, granular or powdered forms.

Structure

It is a linear copolymer with homopolymeric blocks of (1-4)-linked β-D-mannuronate (M) and its C-5 epimer α-L-guluronate (G) residues, respectively, covalently linked together in different sequences or blocks.

The monomers can appear in homopolymeric blocks of consecutive G-residues (G-blocks), consecutive M-residues (M-blocks) or alternating M and G-residues (MG-blocks).

Forms

Commercial varieties of alginate are extracted from seaweed, including the giant kelp Macrocystis pyrifera, Ascophyllum nodosum, and various types of Laminaria. It is also produced by two bacterial genera Pseudomonas and Azotobacter, which played a major role in the unravelling of its biosynthesis pathway. Bacterial alginates are useful for the production of micro- or nanostructures suitable for medical applications.

Uses

Alginate absorbs water quickly, which makes it useful as an additive in dehydrated products such as slimming aids, and in the manufacture of paper and textiles. It is also used for waterproofing and fireproofing fabrics, as a gelling agent, and for thickening drinks, ice cream and cosmetics.

Alginate is used in various pharmaceutical preparations such as Gaviscon, Bisodol, and Asilone. Alginate is used extensively as an impression-making material in dentistry, prosthetics, lifecasting and occasionally for creating positives for small-scale casting. It is also used in the food industry, for thickening soups and jellies.

Calcium alginate is used in different types of medical products, including burn dressings that promote healing and can be removed with less pain than conventional dressings.

Also, due to alginate's biocompatibility and simple gelation with divalent cations such as Ca, it is widely used for cell immobilization and encapsulation.

Alginic acid (alginato) is also used in culinary arts, most notably in the "Esferificación" (Sphereification) techniques of Ferran Adrià of El Bulli in Roses, Girona, where natural juices of fruits and vegetables are encapsulated in bubbles that "explode" on the tongue when consumed. One of the most famous examples of this use of alginic acid was when Ferran Adrià used alginic acid to make apple caviar.

Due to its ability to absorb water quickly, alginate can be changed through a lyophilization process to a new structure that has the ability to expand. It is used in the weight loss industry as an appetite suppressant.

In March, 2010 researchers at Newcastle University announced that dietary alginates can reduce human fat uptake by more than 75%.

Sodium alginate

The chemical compound sodium alginate is the sodium salt of alginic acid. Its empirical formula is NaC₆H₇O₆. Sodium alginate is a gum, extracted from the cell walls of brown algae

Uses

As a flavorless gum, it is used by the foods industry to increase viscosity and as an emulsifier. It is also used in indigestion tablets and the preparation of dental impressions.

A major application for sodium alginate is in reactive dye printing, as thickener for reactive dyestuffs (such as the Procion cotton-reactive dyes) in textile screen-printing and carpet jet-printing. Alginates do not react with these dyes and wash out easily, unlike starch-based thickeners.

Sodium alginate is a good chelator for pulling radioactive toxins from the body, such as iodine-131 and strontium-90 that have taken the place of their non-radioactive counterparts. It is also used in immobilizing enzymes by inclusion.

As a food additive, sodium alginate is used especially in the production of gel-like foods. For example, bakers' "Chellies" are often gelled alginate "jam." Also, the pimento stuffing in prepared cocktail olives is usually injected as a slurry at the same time that the stone is ejected; the slurry is subsequently set by immersing the olive in a solution of a calcium salt, which causes rapid gelation by electrostatic cross-linking. A similar process can be used to make "chunks" of everything from cat food through "reformed" ham or fish to "fruit" pieces for pies. It has the E-number 401.

Nowadays, it is also used in the biological experiments for the immobilization of cells to obtain important products like alcohols, organic acids, etc.

In recent years, sodium alginate has been used in molecular gastronomy at some of the best restaurants in the world. Ferran Adria pioneered the technique, and it has since been used by chefs such as Grant Achatz and Heston Blumenthal. Sodium alginate is combined with calcium lactate or similar compound to create spheres of liquid surrounded by a thin jelly membrane.

Potassium alginate

Potassium alginate is a chemical compound that is the potassium salt of alginic acid. It is an extract of seaweed. Its empirical chemical formula is KC₆H₇O₆.

Uses

Potassium alginate is widely used in foods as a stabilizer, thickener, and emulsifier.

Its use as a pharmaceutical excipient is currently limited to experimental hydrogel systems. The viscosity, adhesiveness, elasticity, stiffness, and cohesiveness of potassium alginate hydrogels have been determined and compared with values from a range of other hydrogel-forming materials. The effect of calcium ions on the rheological properties of procyanidin hydrogels containing potassium alginate and intended for oral administration has also been investigated.

See also

Hyaluronic acid, a similar polysaccharide in animals

References

1. Roew, Raymond (2009), "Adipic Acid", Handbook of Pharmaceutical Excipients, pp. 11–12
2. Remminghorst and Rehm (2009). "Microbial Production of Alginate: Biosynthesis and Applications". Microbial Production of Biopolymers and Polymer Precursors. Caister Academic Press. ISBN 978-1-904455-36-3.
3. "Lo Mejor de la Gastronomia". StarChefs.com. Retrieved 2007-11-14.
4. "Seaweed to tackle rising tide of obesity". Newcastle University. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
5. Sutton, A., Harrison, G. E., Carr, T. E., and Barltrop, D. Reduction in the absorption of dietary strontium in children by an alginate derivative. Br.J.Radiol. 44, 567. 1971
6. Sutton, A., Harrison, B. E., Carr, T. E., and Barltrop, D. Reduction in the absorption of dietary strontium in children by an alginate derivative. Int.J.Radiat.Biol.Relat Stud.Phys.Chem.Med. 19, 79-85. 1971

External links

• More details about Alginate.
• Alginate seaweed sources
• Alginate properties
• article Wired on Easy Cheese, describing sodium alginate

• Polysaccharides
• Gums
• Edible thickening agents
• Copolymers
• Dental materials
• Excipients
• Food additives