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Diffusion characteristics of calcium alginate gels
Author(s) -
Amsden Brian,
Turner Norma
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
biotechnology and bioengineering
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.136
H-Index - 189
eISSN - 1097-0290
pISSN - 0006-3592
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1097-0290(19991205)65:5<605::aid-bit14>3.0.co;2-c
Subject(s) - thermal diffusivity , sodium alginate , chemistry , diffusion , sodium , calcium , calcium alginate , polymer , bovine serum albumin , albumin , glucuronic acid , chemical engineering , chromatography , nuclear chemistry , biochemistry , organic chemistry , polysaccharide , thermodynamics , physics , engineering
The diffusivity of a protein solute (bovine serum albumin) within calcium alginate gels made from sodium alginate of different guluronic acid content was determined. It was found that protein diffusion within alginate gels, prepared to be isotropic in structure, was greatest for gels prepared from sodium alginate of low guluronic acid content as opposed to those prepared from sodium alginate of high guluronic acid content. This finding was explained in terms of the difference in flexibility of the polymer backbone of the two alginates. The greater the polymer backbone flexibility, the greater the solute diffusivity within the gel. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Biotechnol Bioeng 65: 605–610, 1999.