Carrageenan is a hydrophilic colloid extracted from red algae such as unicornis. Lactose (or 3,6-lactone-D-galactose) is alternately linked to form. Due to the different binding forms of sulfate groups, 7 main types of carrageenans have been produced, including κ-type, ι-type, λ-type, γ-type, ν-type, ξ-type, and μ-type, among which the most widely used are the first three. Carrageenan has excellent physical properties such as gelling and thickening properties, and has been widely used in the food industry.
Carrageenan is one of the few natural polysaccharides substituted with high sulfate groups. Due to the existence of sulfate groups, carrageenan has a significant broad-spectrum antiviral effect. A large number of studies have confirmed that carrageenan has a significant inhibitory effect on influenza virus, human immunodeficiency virus, herpes virus, human papilloma virus, etc. Carrageenan can play an antiviral role in multiple processes such as virus adsorption, penetration, shelling, and replication. Based on the antiviral effect of carrageenan, many companies at home and abroad have taken the lead in developing carrageenan in the fields of biomedicine and medical devices through mucosal administration.
Product application case:
This product is an antiviral nasal spray with ι-carrageenan (red algae extract) as the main component developed by the German company Marinomed. It was launched in the European Union as an over-the-counter drug in 2013. and the common cold in nursing women. The product inhibits influenza virus attachment and entry into cells, reduces virus replication, and relieves symptoms caused by the virus.
The product is a carrageenan nasal spray developed by the Swiss company Mundipharma. Clinical trials have confirmed that this product can help improve runny nose and nasal congestion caused by colds, and relieve the discomfort caused by nasal congestion.
We can see that carrageenan has shown great development potential in the development of anti-virus related products. With the deepening of people's understanding of the structure and biological function of carrageenan, its application fields are also expanding. In recent years, with the advancement of oligosaccharide preparation and analysis technology, the technical barriers for the preparation of carrageenan oligosaccharides have been broken and are developing towards refinement. A large number of studies have shown that carrageenan oligosaccharides obtained by degradation of carrageenan are significantly improved compared with carrageenan in terms of solubility, stability and antiviral properties, which may be used for medicinal purposes of carrageenan. It is also an important direction for the high-value utilization of carrageenan.