Bioactive Carbohydrate Polymers is probably the first book dealing with the latest in the field of polysaccharides and related products and their biological activities, especially the immunological effects. The different chapters describe the structure and bioactivity of polysaccharides from plants used in traditional medicine in different parts of the world, especially China, Japan and Europe. The focus of the book is on immunologically active plant and seaweed polysaccharides, pharmacological activities of sulphated polysaccharides of animal and seaweed origin, and on possible activities of polysaccharides in our food. Methods for isolation and characterisation of the polymers with chemical and enzymatic methods is covered, as well as discussions on the different biological test-systems and the information they provide. This book will be useful to scientists and postgraduate students working with polysaccharides and their possible uses, and should be of interest for people working in the areas of chemistry, biology, pharmacy and medicine.

Carbohydrates play an important role in many biological and biochemical processes, including the fertilisation, cell differentiation and maturation, protein folding and degradation. Carbohydrate polymers covers the study and exploitation of carbohydrate polymers which have current or potential industrial application in areas such as food, textiles, paper, wood, adhesives, biodegradables, biorefining, pharmaceuticals, and oil recovery. This book focuses on recent developments on carbohydrate-binding module (CBM) applications in the biomedical, biological and biotechnological fields. Furthermore, polysaccharides are complex carbohydrates that are made up chains of monosaccharide units linked by glycosidic bonds. This book reviews the literature on fibres spun from several polysaccharides and fibre spinning techniques, including both conventional fibre spinning methods and electrospinning. Resulting fibre properties and prospective applications are discussed. This book also reviews research on polysaccharide film-formation and characteristics, analysed mechanical and barrier properties of polysaccharide-based films, summarises applications of polysaccharide films in food products and makes conclusions as to the status of polysaccharide films and their future developmental direction. Other chapters in this book examine the pathways leading to the production of bioactive oligosaccharides that have biotechnological applications. The current progress in the development of marine carbohydrates into nutraceuticals and their applications are explored as well.

Bioactive Polysaccharides offers a comprehensive review of the structures and bioactivities of bioactive polysaccharides isolated from traditional herbs, fungi, and seaweeds. It describes and discusses specific topics based on the authors’ rich experience, including extraction technologies, practical techniques required for purification and fractionation, strategies and skills for elucidating the fine structures, in-vitro and in-vivo protocols, and methodologies for evaluating the specific bioactivities, including immune-modulating activities, anti-cancer activities, anti-oxidant activities, and others. This unique book also discusses partial structure-functionality (bioactivities) relationships based on conformational studies. This comprehensive work can be used as a handbook to explore potential applications in foods, pharmaceuticals, and nutraceutical areas for commercial interests. Serves as a comprehensive review on extraction technologies, and as a practical guide for the purification and fractionation of bioactive polysaccharides Brings step-by-step strategies for elucidating the fine structures and molecular characterizations of bioactive polysaccharides Includes detailed experimental design and methodologies for investigation bioactivities using both in-vitro and in-vivo protocols Clarifies how to extract, purify, and fractionate bioactive polysaccharides, also exploring health benefits Useful as a guide to explore the commercial potentials of bioactive polysaccharides as pharmaceuticals, medicine, and functional foods

Sugars, with a scientific term as saccharides, are involved in various aspects in the lives of human beings, including the sense of taste, energy for daily life, etc. Recent development in polysaccharides, as well as the background knowledge in this field, further deepens insight into their roles as healthy supplements. In this book, the principles on polysaccharides' solubility and structure, methodologies and application of polysaccharides have been reviewed. The chapters in this book include the relationship between structure and solubility of polysaccharide, the experimental and computational researches on polysaccharide solubility and the common polysaccharide, which may further aid scholars and researchers in regard to solubility of polysaccharides, methodologies and modification.

Polymers are an important part in everyday life; products made from polymers range from sophisticated articles, such as biomaterials, to aerospace materials. One of the reasons for the great popularity exhibited by polymers is their ease of processing. Polymer properties can be tailored to meet specific needs by varying the “atomic composition” of the repeat structure, by varying molecular weight and by the incorporation (via covalent and non-covalent interactions) of an enormous range of compounds to impart specific activities. In food science, the use of polymeric materials is widely explored, from both an engineering and a nutraceutical point of view. Regarding the engineering application, researchers have discovered the most suitable materials for intelligent packaging which preserves the food quality and prolongs the shelf-life of the products. Furthermore, in agriculture, specific functionalized polymers are used to increase the efficiency of treatments and reduce the environmental pollution. In the nutraceutical field, because consumers are increasingly conscious of the relationship between diet and health, the consumption of high quality foods has been growing continuously. Different compounds (e.g. high quality proteins, lipids and polysaccharides) are well known to contribute to the enhancement of human health by different mechanisms, reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary disease, and hypertension. This second volume focuses on the importance of polymers and functional food and in food processing

This text emphasises the metabolic reactions of carbohydrates, and the functions of such reactions in the organism; secondly, the metabolism and functions of carbohydrate polymers.