The provided is a hydrogel that utilizes the naturally occurring substance pectin to exhibit an equivalent or greater effect. Specifically, the present application is intended to provide a hydrogel or a patch which is stable, has strong adhesive strength, is advantageous for drug delivery, can be used for sustained treatment, has extremely low cytotoxicity, and is unlikely to induce an immune response, and thus can be used on various body parts, in particular the oral cavity. In addition, the provide is a hydrogel patch which employs a freeze-drying method prior to crosslinking, and thus exhibits superior adhesion to patches employing a post-crosslinking freeze-drying method.

Aspects of the invention provide compositions for use in the treatment galectin-dependent diseases. In particular, compositions comprising a selectively depolymerized, branched galactoarabino-rhamnogalacturonate whose backbone is predominantly comprised of 1,4-linked galacturonic acid (GalA) moieties, with a lesser backbone composition of alternating 1,4-linked GalA and 1,2-linked rhamnose (Rha), which in-turn is linked to any number of side chains, including predominantly 1,4-b-D-galactose (Gal) and 1,5-a-L-arabinose (Ara) residues.

The present invention includes a hydrogel and a method of making a porous hydrogel by preparing an aqueous mixture of an uncrosslinked polymer and a crystallizable molecule; casting the mixture into a vessel; allowing the cast mixture to dry to form an amorphous hydrogel film; seeding the cast mixture with a seed crystal of the crystallizable molecule; growing the crystallizable molecule into a crystal structure within the uncrosslinked polymer; crosslinking the polymer around the crystal structure under conditions in which the crystal structure within the crosslinked polymer is maintained; and dissolving the crystals within the crosslinked polymer to form the porous hydrogel.

Anode comprising an anode material, a protective material and a current collector is provided. The anode material is a mixture comprising an active material, at least one electronically conductive agent and at least one binder. The active material may be an alloy of silicon and lithium or an alloy of silicon oxide and lithium. There is provided a process for the preparation of the anode. Also, there is provided use of the anode in the fabrication of a battery.

Cross-linked shear-thinning fluids of pectic acid demonstrating increased viscosity with decreasing shear, as well as methods of producing and using the same. A shear-thinning fluid includes an aqueous solution of pectic acid cross-linked by a divalent cation is disclosed. The pectic acid may be present in an amount ranging from about 0.5 to about 3.0% (w/v), the divalent cation may be present at a concentration of from about 0.5 mM to about 7.0 mM, and the viscosity of the shear-thinning fluid increases with decreasing shear. These cross-linked shear-thinning fluids of pectic acid can be utilized for controlled release formulations, cell encapsulation, and 3D printing, and provide for an improved balance between structure fidelity/mechanical stability and cell viability.

Methods for producing an activated pectin-containing biomass composition are provided. These methods include A) mixing a starting pectin-containing biomass material comprising an insoluble fiber component and an insoluble protopectin component with an aqueous solution of an alcohol to form a mixture; B) activating the starting pectin-containing biomass material to form an activated pectin-containing biomass material comprising the insoluble fiber component and a soluble pectin component by subjecting the starting pectin-containing biomass material to (i) an activating solution formed by adding hydrochloric acid and/or sulfuric acid to the mixture to adjust the pH of the mixture within the range from at or about 0.5 to at or about 2.5 and (ii) heat to a temperature greater than at or about 40 degrees Celsius; C) applying mechanical energy either (i) to the mixture of step A), (ii) during the activating of step B), or (iii) to the mixture of step A) and during the activating of step B); and (D) separating the activated pectin-containing biomass material from the mixture. Alcohol is generally present in the mixture at an amount of greater than about 35 weight percent based on the total weight of the mixture. Activated pectin-containing biomass compositions are also provided.

A prebiotic carbohydrate composition is described comprising POS and galacturonic acid from fruit peel that can be used as an ingredient for the formulation of food products. The prebiotic carbohydrate composition is useful as a replacement for conventional sugars, maintaining the rheological characteristics of the product (texturizer) without increasing its caloric content. Moreover, the carbohydrate composition has bioactive potential, antioxidant capacity, and prebiotic properties.

Objective of the present invention is to provide polysaccharides which modulate immune response, and which can be used as ingredients in edible products or pharmaceutical compositions. The present invention provides such polysaccharides obtained from the species Camellia sinensis, which comprise a rhamnogalacturonan-I core, and wherein the molar ratio of galacturonyl acid residues to rhamnosyl residues in the backbone of the polysaccharide is close to 1:1. The present invention also provides edible products or pharmaceutical compositions containing such polysaccharides, in order to modulate immune response.

The present invention includes a hydrogel and a method of making a porous hydrogel by preparing an aqueous mixture of an uncrosslinked polymer and a crystallizable molecule; casting the mixture into a vessel; allowing the cast mixture to dry to form an amorphous hydrogel film; seeding the cast mixture with a seed crystal of the crystallizable molecule; growing the crystallizable molecule into a crystal structure within the uncrosslinked polymer; crosslinking the polymer around the crystal structure under conditions in which the crystal structure within the crosslinked polymer is maintained; and dissolving the crystals within the crosslinked polymer to form the porous hydrogel.

The invention provides a hydrogen sulfide releasing polymer compound having a polysaccharide backbone, wherein the compound has at least two substructures, and wherein said substructures are capable of releasing hydrogen sulfide by thiol activation as well as uses thereof. Additionally, a method of treatment and prevention of a skin condition, an ocular disease or osteoarthritis is provided.