Abstract:
Konjac glucomannan (KGM) is a kind of neutral heteropolysaccharide extracted from konjac tubers. KGM has been widely used in food, medicine, chemical industry and other fields as thickener and gel agent for a long time.It is a highly efficient texture modifier and rheological property regulator. However, the application of natural KGM is limited due to its low water solubility and poor processability. Chemical and physical modifications are effective approaches to overcome these limitations, thereby developing new functionalities and expanding its new applications. In this review, various modification methods of KGM and the applications of unmodified and modified products in emulsion, gel, membrane materials, biomedical materials, food, nutrition and health fields were comprehensively summarized. Recent progress on chemical modifications of KGM such as esterification, deacetylation, carboxymethylation, sulfonation, oxidation, cationization and graft copolymerization, and physical modifications including blending filling, physical crosslinking, microfluidic spinning and γ irradiation were highlighted and holistic discussed. Furthermore, the future trend as well as some problems and challenges in the research and development of KGM were pointed out.
