Gelation mechanism of gellan gum for biomedical applications

This chapter describes recent studies on the gelling mechanism of highly acetylated and deacetylated gellans. The presence or absence of ions, the type and concentration of cations, and the pH variation are some factors that influence the gelation mechanism. Different models have been proposed in the literature to explain gellan gum (GG) gelation. Furthermore, rheological studies are necessary to better understand the behavior of this polysaccharide. Viscosity, viscoelasticity, and other parameters under different physical conditions, such as temperature, pH, and aging, are some aspects that must be analyzed. Therefore rheological studies on GG were also reported. Due to properties such as nontoxicity and biocompatibility, a wide variety of applications in the biomedical area of materials based on GG have been described in the literature and shown in this chapter.