Synthesis and Characterization of O-Carboxymethylchitosan

O-Carboxymethylchitosan is a derivative of chitosan soluble in a wide pH range and is attracting growing interest due to its use as a vehicle for insoluble drugs and cell modulation as a result of its biocompatibility among other properties. These properties open up future prospects for the use of this compound particularly in the medical biomedical and pharmaceutical fields. On the other hand the increased incidence of infections by Candida albicans and other Candida species partly due to characteristics inherent to the yeasts themselves such as resistance to antifungals and biofilm formation reinforce the need for research into compounds that promote the reduction or even inhibition of biofilm formation. O-Carboxymethylchitosan did not show cytotoxicity at the concentrations evaluated in the present study - [ ]Max.= 50 mg/mL-1. O-Carboxymethylchitosan did not inhibit biofilm formation in the yeasts studied and increased biofilm formation in Candida albicans 12031 and Candida albicans 05 in plates treated for 24 hours.