Cell encapsulation unit) and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (acetylated unit). It is derived from the N-deacetylation of chitin and has been used for several applications such as drug delivery, space-filling implants and in wound dressings. However, one drawback of this polymer is its weak mechanical properties and is thus often combined with other polymers such collagen to form a polymer with stronger mechanical properties for cell encapsulation applications. Agarose is a polysaccharide derived from seaweed used for nanoencapsulation of cells and the cell/agarose suspension can be modified to form microbeads by reducing the temperature during preparation. However, one drawback with the microbeads so obtained is
Glucose cycle the nonreducing end of glycogen. A phosphate group breaks the bond between C 1 of a glucose ring and the O that connects it to the next(phosphorolysis). One glucose unit is thus split off. Glycogen (with n glucose units) is converted into G-1-P(a PO group now attaches to C1 where O used to ) and glycogen (with n-1 glucose units) by enzyme glycogen phosphorylase. G-1-P is then converted into G-6-P by enzyme phosphoglucomutase. A water molecule hydrolyses G-6-P to glucose, the enzyme is glucose-6-phosphatase. When glucose enters a cell it is rapidly changed to glucose 6-phosphate, by hexokinase or glucokinase.