Deep eutectic solvents (DESs) have gained great interests as ecofriendly and safe solvents in diverse areas. Herein, various chitin-glucan complexes (CGCs) were prepared from white button mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) using DESs. Ultrasonication of mushroom in five DESs yielded two types of CGCs from each DES, one from the DES-insoluble residue (DES_P) and another from the DES-soluble extract (DES_S). The ten resulting CGCs with varying chitin-to-β-glucan ratios were compared with alkali-insoluble matter (AIM), chemically prepared using NaOH. BU_S and BU_P, prepared using BU comprising betaine and urea, were obtained in the highest yields with reasonably low protein and mineral contents. Despite different acetylation degrees (77.3% and 57.3%, respectively), BU_S and BU_P both degraded at 318 °C and showed remarkably low crystallinity (32.0% and 37.0% for BU_S and BU_P, respectively) compared to AIM, commercial chitin, and the reported CGCs. The surface of BU_S and BU_P was very porous and rough compared with AIM as a result of reduced H-bonds and lowered crystallinity. The DES-based method can potentially enable the preparation of advanced biomaterials from mushrooms under mild and ecofriendly conditions.
Keywords: Chitin-glucan complex; Deep eutectic solvent; Mushroom.
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