PRODUCTS AND APPLICATIONS OF BIOPOLYMERS Edited by Casparus Johannes Reinhard Verbeek Products and Applications of Biopolymers Edited by Casparus Johannes Reinhard Verbeek Published by InTech Janeza Trdine 9, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia Copyright © 2012 InTech All chapters are Open Access distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 license, which allows users to download, copy and build upon published articles even for commercial purposes, as long as the author and publisher are properly credited, which ensures maximum dissemination and a wider impact of our publications. After this work has been published by InTech, authors have the right to republish it, in whole or part, in any publication of which they are the author, and to make other personal use of the work. Any republication, referencing or personal use of the work must explicitly identify the original source. As for readers, this license allows users to download, copy and build upon published chapters even for commercial purposes, as long as the author and publisher are properly credited, which ensures maximum dissemination and a wider impact of our publications. Notice Statements and opinions expressed in the chapters are these of the individual contributors and not necessarily those of the editors or publisher. No responsibility is accepted for the accuracy of information contained in the published chapters. The publisher assumes no responsibility for any damage or injury to persons or property arising out of the use of any materials, instructions, methods or ideas contained in the book. Publishing Process Manager Romana Vukelic Technical Editor Teodora Smiljanic Cover Designer InTech Design Team First published March, 2012 Printed in Croatia A free online edition of this book is available at www.intechopen.com Additional hard copies can be obtained from orders@intechweb.org Products and Applications of Biopolymers, Edited by Casparus Johannes Reinhard Verbeek p. cm. ISBN 978-953-51-0226-7 Contents Preface IX Part 1 Biopolymer Products 1 Chapter 1 Gum Arabic: More Than an Edible Emulsifier 3 Mariana A. Montenegro, María L. Boiero, Lorena Valle and Claudio D. Borsarelli Chapter 2 Poly(Lactic Acid) as a Biopolymer-Based Nano-Composite 27 Emad A. Jaffar Al-Mulla and Nor Azowa Bt Ibrahim Chapter 3 Fermentation of Sweet Sorghum into Added Value Biopolymer of Polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) 41 Pakawadee Kaewkannetra Chapter 4 Xylan, a Promising Hemicellulose for Pharmaceutical Use 61 Acarília Eduardo da Silva, Henrique Rodrigues Marcelino, Monique Christine Salgado Gomes, Elquio Eleamen Oliveira, Toshiyuki Nagashima Jr and Eryvaldo Sócrates Tabosa Egito Chapter 5 Hydrodynamic Properties of Gelatin – Studies from Intrinsic Viscosity Measurements 85 Martin Alberto Masuelli and Maria Gabriela Sansone Part 2 Applications of Biopolymers 117 Chapter 6 Role of Biopolymers in Green Nanotechnology 119 Sonal I. Thakore Chapter 7 Stable Isotope Applications in Bone Collagen with Emphasis on Deuterium/Hydrogen Ratios 141 Katarina Topalov, Arndt Schimmelmann, P. David Polly and Peter E. Sauer Chapter 8 A Facile One-Pot Synthesis of MSe (M = Cd or Zn) Nanoparticles Using Biopolymer as Passivating Agent 163 Oluwatobi S. Oluwafemi and Sandile P. Songca VI Contents Chapter 9 Alkylresorcinols Protect the DNA from UV-Damage In Vitro and In Vivo Models 185 Dmitry Deryabin, Olga Davydova and Irina Gryazeva Chapter 10 Polysaccharide-Specific Isoperoxidases as an Important Component of the Plant Defence System 201 Igor V. Maksimov, Ekaterina A. Cherepanova and Antonina V. Sorokan’ Preface It is interesting to consider that biopolymers are by no means new to this world. It is only because of our fascination with petrochemical products that these wonderful materials have been neglected for so long. In fact, natural or biopolymers have been considered in the 1940s and Henry Ford has used these biopolymers in the construction of a car. However, with the discovery of petrochemical polymers, the low cost of these quickly over shadowed natural materials. Today we face a different challenge. Environmental pressure is pushing away from synthetic or petro-chemically derived products, while economic factors are pulling back from often more expensive “green” options. This paradox is what fuels research into materials and products whose properties fulfill environmental and economic requirements. This book presents two aspects of biopolymers; products and applications. In the first section, Products of Biopolymers, a collection of chapters is presented covering topics such as antioxidant properties of one of the oldest known natural polymers, gum arabic, the use of poly(lactic acid) nano-composites in packaging, utilizing sweet sorghum as a novel biomass source to produce polyhydroxyalkanoates, extracting xylan from corn cobs, hydrodynamic properties of gelatin which can be used to make films and the role of biopolymers in “green” nano-technology. These chapters have been written by prominent researchers, who are experts in their fields. Section 1 aim at highlighting the diverse range of products and research in this field, which represents many industrial applications from pharmaceutical to possibly automotive and construction. In section 2, Applications of Biopolymers, the use and significance of biopolymers in biotechnology are described in a collection of chapters covering topics on stable isotope analysis in bone collagen which can be used to gather information on historical living conditions, biopolymer-capped nano-particles in the emic-conductor industry, protection of DNA against UV damage and the role of biopolymers in plant defense systems. It shows that biopolymer research is not limited to products made of biopolymers, but that these polymers could play a vital role in other areas of research too. X Preface The diverse field of biopolymers outlined in this book does underline its importance today. We can expect to see biopolymers in packaging, medicine, construction, in fact in almost every part of life – just as synthetic plastics are ubiquitous with everyday life at the moment. Dr. Casparus Johannes Reinhard Verbeek School of Engineering Faculty of Science and Engineering University of Waikato Hamilton New Zealand . PRODUCTS AND APPLICATIONS OF BIOPOLYMERS Edited by Casparus Johannes Reinhard Verbeek Products and Applications of Biopolymers Edited by Casparus. environmental and economic requirements. This book presents two aspects of biopolymers; products and applications. In the first section, Products of Biopolymers, a collection of chapters is. (ROS), and its antimicrobial activity (AMA). Products and Applications of Biopolymers 4 2. GA sources and processing Acacia senegal and Acacia seyal trees are the main sources of GA.