:Xanthan gum

Xanthan gum was discovered by Allene Rosalind Jeanes and her research team at the United States Department of Agriculture and brought into commercial production by CP Kelco in the early 1960s under the trade name Kelzan, remaining the only manufacturer in the US.{{cite book | vauthors = Whistler RL, BeMiller JN |title=Industrial gums, polysaccharides and their derivatives |date=1973 |publisher=Academic Press |location=New York |isbn=978-0-12-746252-3 |edition=2nd}}{{cite web |url=https://www.cpkelco.com/markets-served/household-products/products/kelzan-xanthan-gum/ |title=KELZAN Xanthan Gum - CP Kelco |author= |date=Feb 18, 2019 |website=cpkelco.com |publisher=CP Kelco |access-date=Feb 18, 2019 |quote=CP Kelco offers a range of biopolymers to thicken, suspend and stabilize emulsions and other water-based systems. The KELZAN xanthan gum line of industrial products can be used to modify the texture of industrial products and to stabilize household cleaners, fabric care products, suspensions, oil-in-water emulsions and foams against separation.}} It was approved for use in foods in 1968 and is accepted as a safe food additive in the US, Canada, European countries, and many other countries, with E number E415 and CAS number 11138-66-2.

Xanthan gum derives its name from the species of bacteria used during the fermentation process, Xanthomonas campestris.{{cite journal | vauthors = Barrere GC, Barber CE, Daniels MJ | title = Molecular cloning of genes involved in the production of the extracellular polysaccharide xanthan by Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris. | journal = International Journal of Biological Macromolecules | date = December 1986 | volume = 8 | issue = 6 | pages = 372–374 | doi = 10.1016/0141-8130(86)90058-9 }}

The addition of 1% xanthan gum can produce a significant increase in the viscosity of a liquid.{{cite book | vauthors = Davidson RL | title = Handbook of Water-soluble Gums and Resins | publisher = McGraw Hill | year = 1980 | isbn = 978-0-07-015471-1}}

In foods, xanthan gum is a common ingredient in salad dressings and sauces. It helps to prevent oil separation by stabilizing the emulsion, although it is not an emulsifier. Xanthan gum also helps suspend solid particles, such as spices, and it helps create the desired texture in many ice creams. Toothpaste often contains xanthan gum as a binder to keep the product uniform. Xanthan gum also helps thicken commercial egg substitutes made from egg whites by replacing the fat and emulsifiers found in yolks. It is also a preferred method of thickening liquids for those with swallowing disorders, since it does not change the color or flavor of foods or beverages at typical use levels.cuisine, m. (2014). Xanthan Gum. Retrieved from modernist cuisine: {{cite web |url=http://www.modernistcookingmadeeasy.com/info/modernist-ingredients/more/xanthan-gum |title=Xanthan Gum |access-date=2014-06-21 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140618041738/http://www.modernistcookingmadeeasy.com/info/modernist-ingredients/more/xanthan-gum |archive-date=2014-06-18 |date=2012-11-27 }} In gluten-free baking, xanthan gum is used to give the dough or batter the stickiness that would otherwise be achieved with gluten. In most foods, it is used at concentrations of 0.5% or less. Xanthan gum is used in a wide range of food products, such as sauces, dressings, meat and poultry products, bakery products, confectionery products, beverages, dairy products, and others.

In the oil industry, xanthan gum is used in large quantities to thicken drilling mud.{{cite web|url=http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Terms/x/xanthan_gum.aspx|website=www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com|title=Oilfield Glossary - xanthan gum|publisher=Schlumberger|access-date=30 April 2017|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170212103749/http://www.glossary.oilfield.slb.com/Terms/x/xanthan_gum.aspx|archive-date=12 February 2017}} These fluids carry the solids cut by the drilling bit to the surface. Xanthan gum provides improved "low end"{{clarification needed|date=October 2024}} rheology. When circulation stops, the solids remain suspended in the drilling fluid. The widespread use of horizontal drilling and the demand for good control of drilled solids has led to its expanded use. It has been added to concrete poured underwater in order to increase its viscosity and prevent washout.

In cosmetics, xanthan gum is used to prepare water gels.{{cite journal | vauthors = Kumar A, Rao KM, Han SS | title = Application of xanthan gum as polysaccharide in tissue engineering: A review | journal = Carbohydrate Polymers | volume = 180 | pages = 128–144 | date = January 2018 | pmid = 29103488 | doi = 10.1016/j.carbpol.2017.10.009 }} It is also used in oil-in-water emulsions to enhance droplet coalescence.{{cite journal | vauthors = Ye A, Hemar Y, Singh H | title = Influence of polysaccharides on the rate of coalescence in oil-in-water emulsions formed with highly hydrolyzed whey proteins | journal = Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry | volume = 52 | issue = 17 | pages = 5491–5498 | date = August 2004 | pmid = 15315390 | doi = 10.1021/jf030762o | bibcode = 2004JAFC...52.5491Y }} Xanthan gum is under preliminary research for its potential uses in tissue engineering to construct hydrogels and scaffolds supporting three-dimensional tissue formation. Furthermore, thiolated xanthan gum (see thiomers) has shown potential for drug delivery,{{cite journal | vauthors = Bhatia M, Ahuja M, Mehta H | title = Thiol derivatization of Xanthan gum and its evaluation as a mucoadhesive polymer | journal = Carbohydrate Polymers | volume = 131 | pages = 119–124 | date = October 2015 | pmid = 26256167 | doi = 10.1016/j.carbpol.2015.05.049 }}{{cite journal | vauthors = Alhakamy NA, Naveen NR, Gorityala S, Kurakula M, Hosny KM, Safhi AY, Bukhary DM, Bukhary HA, Sabei FY, Mushtaq RY, Murshid SS | title = Development of Novel S-Protective Thiolated-Based Mucoadhesive Tablets for Repaglinide: Pharmacokinetic Study | journal = Polymers | volume = 14 | issue = 17 | pages = 3529 | date = August 2022 | pmid = 36080604 | pmc = 9460926 | doi = 10.3390/polym14173529 | doi-access = free }} since by the covalent attachment of thiol groups to this polysaccharide, high mucoadhesive and permeation enhancing properties can be introduced.{{cite journal | vauthors = Leichner C, Jelkmann M, Bernkop-Schnürch A | title = Thiolated polymers: Bioinspired polymers utilizing one of the most important bridging structures in nature | journal = Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews | volume = 151-152 | pages = 191–221 | date = 2019 | pmid = 31028759 | doi = 10.1016/j.addr.2019.04.007 | s2cid = 135464452 }}

The viscosity of xanthan gum solutions decreases with higher shear rates. This is called shear thinning or pseudoplasticity. This means that a product subjected to shear, whether from mixing, shaking, or chewing, will thin. This is similar to the behaviour of tomato ketchup. When the shear forces are removed, the food will thicken again. In salad dressing, the addition of xanthan gum makes it thick enough at rest in the bottle to keep the mixture fairly homogeneous, but the shear forces generated by shaking and pouring thins it, so it can be easily poured. When it exits the bottle, the shear forces are removed and it thickens again, so it clings to the salad. The rheology of xanthan aqua solutions become visco-elastic at higher concentrations of xanthan gum in water.{{cite journal | vauthors = Biroun MH, Haworth L, Abdolnezhad H, Khosravi A, Agrawal P, McHale G, Torun H, Semprebon C, Jabbari M, Fu YQ | title = Impact Dynamics of Non-Newtonian Droplets on Superhydrophobic Surfaces | journal = Langmuir | volume = 39 | issue = 16 | pages = 5793–5802 | date = April 2023 | pmid = 37041655 | pmc = 10134492 | doi = 10.1021/acs.langmuir.3c00043 }}

The greater the concentration of xanthan gum in a liquid, the thicker the liquid will become. An emulsion can be formed with as little as 0.1% (by weight). Increasing the concentration of gum gives a thicker, more stable emulsion, up to 1% xanthan gum. A teaspoon of xanthan gum weighs about 2.5 grams and brings one cup (250{{nbsp}}ml) of water to a 1% concentration.{{cite web | vauthors = Rubenzahl M |url=http://feedme.typepad.com/my_weblog/2016/01/xanthan-gum-magical-food-thickener.html |title=Xanthan gum: Get past the weird and it's magical |access-date=2016-01-02 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304214324/http://feedme.typepad.com/my_weblog/2016/01/xanthan-gum-magical-food-thickener.html |archive-date=2016-03-04 }} Tests and measurements of xanthan gum

To make a foam, 0.2–0.8% xanthan gum is typically used. Larger amounts result in larger bubbles and denser foam. Egg white powder (0.2–2.0%) with 0.1–0.4% xanthan gum yields bubbles similar to soap bubbles.

According to a 2017 safety review by a scientific panel of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), xanthan gum (European food additive number E 415) is extensively digested during intestinal fermentation and causes no adverse effects, even at high intake amounts.{{cite journal | vauthors = Mortensen A, Aguilar F, Crebelli R, Di Domenico A, Frutos MJ, Galtier P, Gott D, Gundert-Remy U, Lambré C, Leblanc JC, Lindtner O, Moldeus P, Mosesso P, Oskarsson A, Parent-Massin D, Stankovic I, Waalkens-Berendsen I, Woutersen RA, Wright M, Younes M, Brimer L, Christodoulidou A, Lodi F, Gelgelova P, Dusemund B | title = Re-evaluation of xanthan gum (E 415) as a food additive | journal = EFSA Journal | volume = 15 | issue = 7 | pages = e04909 | date = July 2017 | pmid = 32625570 | pmc = 7009887 | doi = 10.2903/j.efsa.2017.4909 | publisher = European Food Safety Authority | doi-access = free }} The EFSA panel found no concern about genotoxicity from long-term consumption. The EFSA concluded that there is no safety concern for the general population when xanthan gum is consumed as a food additive.

Xanthan gum is produced by the fermentation of glucose and sucrose. The medium is well-aerated and stirred, and the xanthan polymer is produced extracellularly into the medium. After one to four days, the polymer is precipitated from the medium by the addition of isopropyl alcohol, and the precipitate is dried and milled to give a powder that is readily soluble in water or brine.

It is composed of pentasaccharide repeat units, comprising glucose, mannose, and glucuronic acid in the molar ratio 2:2:1.{{cite journal | vauthors = García-Ochoa F, Santos VE, Casas JA, Gómez E | title = Xanthan gum: production, recovery, and properties | journal = Biotechnology Advances | volume = 18 | issue = 7 | pages = 549–579 | date = November 2000 | pmid = 14538095 | doi = 10.1016/S0734-9750(00)00050-1 }}

A strain of X. campestris that will grow on lactose has been developed, which allows it to be used to process whey, a waste product of cheese production. This can produce 30 g/L of xanthan gum for every 40 g/L of whey powder. Whey-derived xanthan gum is commonly used in many commercial products, such as shampoos and salad dressings.{{cite book | vauthors = Tortora GJ, Funke BR, Case CL | date = 2010 | title = Microbiology: An Introduction | edition = 10th | location = San Francisco | publisher = Benjamin Cummings | pages = 801 }}

Synthesis originates from glucose as substrate for synthesis of the sugar nucleotides precursors UDP-glucose, UDP-glucuronate, and GDP-mannose that are required for building the pentasaccharide repeat unit. This links the synthesis of xanthan to carbohydrate metabolism. The repeat units are built up at undecaprenylphosphate lipid carriers that are anchored in the cytoplasmic membrane.{{citation needed|date=April 2017}}

Specific glycosyltransferases sequentially transfer the sugar moieties of the nucleotide sugar xanthan precursors to the lipid carriers. Acetyl and pyruvyl residues are added as non-carbohydrate decorations. Mature repeat units are polymerized and exported in a way resembling the Wzy-dependent polysaccharide synthesis mechanism of Enterobacteriaceae. Products of the gum gene cluster drive synthesis, polymerization, and export of the repeat unit.{{cite book | vauthors = Becker A, Vorhölter FJ |year=2009|chapter=Xanthan Biosynthesis by Xanthomonas Bacteria: An Overview of the Current Biochemical and Genomic Data | veditors = Rehm BH |title=Microbial Production of Biopolymers and Polymer Precursors|publisher=Caister Academic Press|isbn = 978-1-904455-36-3}}

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Category:Edible thickening agents

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Category:Natural gums

Category:Polysaccharides

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