Chitosan and polylactide based materials for biomedical applications

One of the advanced methods in medicine is the useage of polylactide 3D printing to obtain instruments and implants. Currently, the topic of combining polylactide and chitosan is relevant in order to create an optimal composition for traumatology needs. The compatibility can be achieved by reducing the molecular weight of chitosan with subsequent modification by adding alkyl structures. The aim of the work is to obtain low molecular weight chitosan, modify it with heptaldehyde, and to study the properties of the obtained products. In this work, low molecular weight chitosan was obtained by exposure of high molecular weight chitosan to the ultrasound and subsequent treatment with enzymes. The resulting low molecular weight chitosan was modified with heptaldehyde. The characteristics of the obtained samples were studied. The lowest molecular weight chitosan was obtained after ultrasound treatment in the presence of dodecyl mercaptan and subsequent treatment with chitosanase. The reduction of molecular weight slightly reduces the strength of the samples. Samples of low molecular weight chitosan are characterized by the appearance of glass transition temperature. The introduction of an alkyl fragment into the chitosan leads to an increase in the elastic properties. The samples of modified chitosan are biocompatible. Adhesion and active growth of fibroblasts on the surface of the films are observed.