It has recently been shown that chitosan (Chit) induces the formation of calcium oxalate (CaOx) crystals, which are mainly responsible for the appearance of kidney stones, and this might limit the use of Chit in vivo. Here, Chit was conjugated with gallic acid (Chit-Gal) to decrease the formation of CaOx crystal. This conjugation was confirmed by FTIR and NMR analyses. Chit-Gal contains 10.2 ± 1.5 mg GA per g of Chit. Compared to the control group, Chit increased the number of crystals by six-fold, mainly in the number of monohydrated CaOx crystals, which are the most harmful CaOx crystals. In addition, Chit increased the zeta potential (ζ) of CaOx crystals by three-fold, indicating that Chit was associated with the crystals. These alterations were abolished when Chit-gal was used in these tests. As oxidative stress is related to renal calculus formation, Chit and Chit-Gal were also evaluated as antioxidants using total antioxidant Capacity (TAC), reducing power, ferrous chelation, and copper chelation tests. Chit-gal was more efficient antioxidant agent in TAC (2 times), in ferrous chelation (90 times), and in reducing Power (5 times) than Chit. Overall, Chit-gal has higher antioxidant activity than Chit, does not induce the formation of CaOx crystals. Thus, Chit-Gal has potential to be used as a chit substitute.
Keywords: gallic acid grafted chitosan; kidney stone; polysaccharides; urolithiasis.