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Gelatin or gelatine (from Latin gelatus 'stiff, frozen') is a translucent, colorless, flavorless food ingredient, commonly derived from collagen taken from animal body parts. It is brittle when dry and rubbery when moist.
And beyond the food world, pharmaceutical pills and everyday cosmetics are pretty tight with their buddy gelatin as well. Like it or not, this is what gelatin is made of.
To some, these facts may be pretty fascinating, but for most of us, that's just plain gross.
As the gelatin cools, these bonds try to reform in the same structure as before, but now with small bubbles of liquid in between. This gives gelatin its semisolid, gel-like texture. [20] Because gelatin is a protein that contains both acid and base amino groups, it acts as an amphoteric molecule, displaying both acidic and basic properties.
As a food additive, gellan gum was first approved for food use in Japan (1988). Gellan gum has subsequently been approved for food, non-food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical uses by many other countries such as US, Canada, China, Korea and the European Union etc. It is widely used as a thickener, emulsifier, and stabilizer. It has E number E418.
Gelatin is generally made from boiling bones or animal hides. That, in turn, breaks down collagen -- which is a protein. Then, that collagen cools and re-forms into -- ta-da! -- gelatin.
Carrageenan is a vegetarian and vegan alternative to gelatin in some applications, and is used to replace gelatin in confectionery and other food. The first industrial commercial cultivation of Eucheuma and Kappaphycus spp. for carrageenan was developed in the Philippines .
Gelatin, along with its more familiar uses, is widely used for the production of microparticles due to its efficiency in forming gels as well as its biodegradability as a particle. Gelatin can be manipulated to form a stable matrix for biologically reactive compounds, allowing for the incorporation and protection against enzymatic degradation. [1]