Application of Ethylenediaminetetra-acetic Acid in the Isolation of Crustacean Chitin

Abstract

ISOLATION of ‘chitin’ {which generally connotes a polysaccharide comprising units of 2-acetamido 2-deoxy-D-glucose (N-acetyl-D-glucosamine)} from the cuticles of crustaceans usually involves¹ decalcification; for example, treatment with N hydrochloric acid followed by repeated, prolonged extraction of the insoluble residue with N sodium hydroxide at 100°. The material remaining undissolved by this treatment is termed ‘chitin’. Such drastic treatment may well effect structural changes in the chitin, such as removal of pendant groups (protein or peptides), de-N-acetylation and fragmentation. Little is known of the mode of association of chitin with protein and a knowledge of this is of importance in studies of the biosynthesis and biological function of chitin.