Enzymatic-assisted extraction and modification of lignocellulosic plant polysaccharides for packaging applications

Abstract

Plant polysaccharides comprise the main renewable resource available in the biosphere for biomaterial production. However, the recalcitrant and heterogeneous structure of lignocellulosic biomass hinders the effective fractionation and exploitation of the polysaccharide components for the design of carbohydrate-based materials. Carbohydrate-active enzymes constitute a selective and versatile biotechnological tool that can assist during the biomass pretreatment steps to extract and fractionate the polysaccharide macromolecular components. Moreover, this enzymatic toolbox can be as well exploited for the tailored modification of the molecular structure of relatively pure polysaccharide components to achieve customized macroscopic properties. This review critically discusses the potential and challenges of the use of plant lignocellulosic polysaccharides and enzymatic modifications to design and prepare suitable materials for packaging applications in terms of their structure-property relations. Structural factors such as the molar mass and crystallinity of the polysaccharide fractions and functional factors such as water sensitivity and processability of the derived films are critical for the material performance.