Pullulan

Pullulan Introduction

Pullulan is natural water-soluble polysaccharide, fermented by Auveobasidium Pullulans. It consists mainly of maltotriose units linked through α-1, 6 - glucosidic bonds. The average molecular weight is 2×105 Da. Pullulan can be developed into various products. It is an excellent film-former, producing a film which is heat sealable with good oxygen barrier properties. It can be used widely in both the pharmaceutical and food industries, such as encapsulating agents, adhesives, thickening, and extending agent. Pullulan has been used as a food ingredient for over 20 years in Japan. It has Generally Regarded As Safe (GRAS) status in the US for a much wider range of applications.


Molecular formula: (C₆H₁₀O₅)_x 

Properties

Pullulan is non-toxic, non-mutagenic, odorless, tasteless, and edible. Dry pullulan powders are white and non-hygroscopic and dissolve readily in hot or cold water. Pullulan solutions are of relatively low viscosity. The viscosity of pullulan solutions is stable to heating, changes in pH, and most metal ions, including sodium chloride.

Applications

Pullulan can be used as either an innovative or decorative film or used in granule form for:

Tabletting: Pullulan is an excellent tabletting excipient.
Pan coating: Pullulan with its excellent adhesive properties and extremely low viscosity is ideally suited for pan-coating chewing gum, chocolate and candies.
Agglomeration: Pullulan has about double the adhesive strength of food starch. This property combined with its lack of flavor enables it to be used effectively in typical agglomeration processes.
Sauces and dressings: Due to its ‘adhesive properties’ use of granular pullulan in sauces improves their ‘on product’ retention without unduly increasing sauce viscosity.
Innovative soft candy: Incorporation of 2-3% Pullulan, enables innovative soft chewy candies to be made by a cold extrusion process without resorting to conventional boiling. This enables heart sensitive materials to be used in these products.
Coatings: Pullulan solutions which are odorless and flavorless can be used as a coating for a wide range of food products to improve appearance, reduce blemishes and increase shelf life.
Capsules: Pullulan can be formed into capsules for use with pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products. Its non-animal origin ensures there are no safely concerns with consumers and it is suitability for all consumers groups.

Product Specification

Solubility	Soluble in water, practically insoluble in ethanol
pH	5.0 - 7.0 (10% solution)
Loss on drying	Not more than 6% (90°, pressure not more than 50 mm Hg, 6 h)
Mono-, di- and oligosaccharides	Not more than 10% (expressed as glucose)
Viscosity	100-180 mm2/s (10% w/w aqueous solution at 30°)
Lead	Not more than 1 mg/kg.
Microbiological criteria	Yeast and moulds: Not more than 100 CFU/g Coliforms: Negative in 25 g Salmonella: Negative in 25 g

Packing and storage:

l 500g/bottle, 10kg/carton, 25 kg/carton or packed to customer’s requirement.

l Keeping in cool place with no direct sunshine exposure and the temperature is below 20°C, the validity period is two years.

Patents

CN 200810187281.0 A mask containing pullulan.