High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs
Crickets, which are commonly used in insect-based foods, are an eco-friendly protein source that can potentially replace crustacean shells for chitin isolation. However, low yields limit this strategy for chitin production. In this study, we focused on cricket legs, which contain a significant amoun...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-06-01
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| Series: | Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666893925001549 |
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| author | Genki Kitagawa Toshifumi Mizuta Masaaki Akamatsu Shinsuke Ifuku |
| author_facet | Genki Kitagawa Toshifumi Mizuta Masaaki Akamatsu Shinsuke Ifuku |
| author_sort | Genki Kitagawa |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Crickets, which are commonly used in insect-based foods, are an eco-friendly protein source that can potentially replace crustacean shells for chitin isolation. However, low yields limit this strategy for chitin production. In this study, we focused on cricket legs, which contain a significant amount of exoskeleton and are generated during insect food processing, to extract high-purity chitin via chemical refining. In this study, nanochitin was produced by wet-grinding the chitin in a uniform water suspension. The complete extraction procedure yielded chitin at 12.6 %, which is five times higher than the yield from the entire body and comparable to that from crab shells. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray scattering, and thermogravimetric analysis confirmed that the chemical structure, crystal structure, and thermal decomposition temperature of the obtained chitin were identical to those of crab shell-derived chitin. Scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and light scattering analyses revealed that the shape of the produced nanochitin was thicker and shorter than that of nanochitin from crab shells. This difference in morphology influenced the dispersibility and viscosity of the water mixture, producing a clearer and less viscous suspension than that obtained from crab shell-derived nanochitin. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-48103080ff1c4e1fb715d7dcbc1144e6 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2666-8939 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications |
| spelling | doaj-art-48103080ff1c4e1fb715d7dcbc1144e62025-08-20T03:45:10ZengElsevierCarbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications2666-89392025-06-011010081610.1016/j.carpta.2025.100816High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legsGenki Kitagawa0Toshifumi Mizuta1Masaaki Akamatsu2Shinsuke Ifuku3Department of Engineering, Graduate School of Sustainability Science, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8552, JapanTechnical Department, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8550, JapanDepartment of Engineering, Graduate School of Sustainability Science, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8552, Japan; Center for Research on Green Sustainable Chemistry, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8550, Japan; Research Institute for Sustainable Humanosphere, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji 611-0011, JapanDepartment of Engineering, Graduate School of Sustainability Science, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8552, Japan; Center for Research on Green Sustainable Chemistry, Tottori University, 4-101 Koyama-Minami, Tottori 680-8550, Japan; Research Institute for Sustainable Humanosphere, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji 611-0011, Japan; Corresponding author.Crickets, which are commonly used in insect-based foods, are an eco-friendly protein source that can potentially replace crustacean shells for chitin isolation. However, low yields limit this strategy for chitin production. In this study, we focused on cricket legs, which contain a significant amount of exoskeleton and are generated during insect food processing, to extract high-purity chitin via chemical refining. In this study, nanochitin was produced by wet-grinding the chitin in a uniform water suspension. The complete extraction procedure yielded chitin at 12.6 %, which is five times higher than the yield from the entire body and comparable to that from crab shells. Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, wide-angle X-ray scattering, and thermogravimetric analysis confirmed that the chemical structure, crystal structure, and thermal decomposition temperature of the obtained chitin were identical to those of crab shell-derived chitin. Scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, and light scattering analyses revealed that the shape of the produced nanochitin was thicker and shorter than that of nanochitin from crab shells. This difference in morphology influenced the dispersibility and viscosity of the water mixture, producing a clearer and less viscous suspension than that obtained from crab shell-derived nanochitin.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666893925001549ChitinNanochitinCricket legHigh yieldInsect-based food |
| spellingShingle | Genki Kitagawa Toshifumi Mizuta Masaaki Akamatsu Shinsuke Ifuku High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs Carbohydrate Polymer Technologies and Applications Chitin Nanochitin Cricket leg High yield Insect-based food |
| title | High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| title_full | High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| title_fullStr | High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| title_full_unstemmed | High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| title_short | High-yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| title_sort | high yield chitin extraction and nanochitin production from cricket legs |
| topic | Chitin Nanochitin Cricket leg High yield Insect-based food |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666893925001549 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT genkikitagawa highyieldchitinextractionandnanochitinproductionfromcricketlegs AT toshifumimizuta highyieldchitinextractionandnanochitinproductionfromcricketlegs AT masaakiakamatsu highyieldchitinextractionandnanochitinproductionfromcricketlegs AT shinsukeifuku highyieldchitinextractionandnanochitinproductionfromcricketlegs |