Chitin is a long-chain polymer of N-acetyl-glucosamine, which is regularly found in the exoskeleton of arthropods including insects, shellfish and the cell wall of fungi. It has been known that chitin can be used for biological and biomedical applications, especially as a biomaterial for tissue repairing, encapsulating drug for drug delivery. However, chitin has been postulated as an inducer of proinflammatory cytokines and certain diseases including asthma. Likewise, chitosan, a long-chain polymer of N-acetyl-glucosamine and d-glucosamine derived from chitin deacetylation, and chitosan oligosaccharide, a short chain polymer, have been known for their potential therapeutic effects, including anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antidiarrheal, and anti-Alzheimer effects. This review summarizes potential utilization and limitation of chitin, chitosan and chitosan oligosaccharide in a variety of diseases. Furthermore, future direction of research and development of chitin, chitosan, and chitosan oligosaccharide for biomedical applications is discussed.

中文翻译：

---

几丁质和壳聚糖衍生物作为生物和生物医学应用的生物材料资源

几丁质是 N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖的长链聚合物，通常存在于节肢动物的外骨骼中，包括昆虫、贝类和真菌的细胞壁。众所周知，甲壳素可用于生物和生物医学应用，特别是作为生物材料用于组织修复、包封药物进行给药。然而，几丁质已被假定为促炎细胞因子和某些疾病（包括哮喘）的诱导剂。同样，壳聚糖是一种由甲壳素脱乙酰作用产生的 N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖和 d-葡糖胺的长链聚合物，壳聚糖是一种短链聚合物，因其潜在的治疗作用而闻名，包括抗炎、抗氧化、止泻, 和抗阿尔茨海默病作用。本综述总结了几丁质的潜在利用和局限性，壳聚糖和壳寡糖在多种疾病中的作用。此外，还讨论了未来用于生物医学应用的甲壳素、壳聚糖和壳寡糖的研发方向。