ABSTRACT

Chitin occurs as a structural component of the exoskeleton of insects and Crustacea as well as in the cell wall of yeasts and fungi where its relative amounts are in the range of 30 to 60%. According to earlier estimates, the resources of chitin in marine organisms are in the order of 106 to 107 tons. The annual production of chitin in zooplankton alone is estimated to be several billion tons. Actually, as Yu et al. have stated in a pictorial formulation, there is a constant “rain” of chitin on the ocean floor [6]. Chitosan occurs naturally in several fungi, especially Mucor species.