Natural product extraction is ingenuity that permits the mass manufacturing of specific products in a cost-effective manner. With the aim of obtaining an alternative chitosan supply, the carapace of dead horseshoe crabs seemed feasible. This sparked an investigation of the structural changes and antioxidant capacity of horseshoe crab chitosan (HCH) by γ-irradiation using ⁶⁰Co source. Chitosan was extracted from the horseshoe crab (Tachypleus gigas; Müller) carapace using heterogeneous chemical N-deacetylation of chitin, followed by the irradiation of HCH using ⁶⁰Co at a dose-dependent rate of 10 kGy/hour. The average molecular weight was determined by the viscosimetric method. Regarding the chemical properties, the crystal-like structures obtained from γ-irradiated chitosan powders were determined using Fourier transfer infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. The change in chitosan structure was evident with dose-dependent rates between 10 and 20 kGy/hour. The antioxidant properties of horseshoe crab-derived chitosan were evaluated in vitro. The 20 kGy γ-irradiation applied to chitosan changed the structure and reduced the molecular weight, providing sufficient degradation for an increase in antioxidant activity. Our findings indicate that horseshoe crab chitosan can be employed for both scald-wound healing and long-term food preservation due to its buffer-like and radical ion scavenging ability.

This dataset presents morphological features, elemental composition and functional groups of different pre- and post-gamma (γ)-irradiated chitosan (10kGy & 20kGy) prepared from shrimp waste. The γ-irradiated chitosan was characterized using Fourier transfer infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analyses. Thermogravimetry/differential thermal analysis (TG/DTA) were performed using Perkin Elmer Pyris Diamond DSC with a heating rate of 10 °C/minute and dynamic synthetic atmospheric air set at flow rate of 100 ml/minute. We observed γ-irradiated chitosan to have shorter polymer size, small pores and compacted structure with active alkyl and hydroxyl groups when compared to non-irradiated chitosan. Our data provides baseline understanding for structure of shrimp chitosan after 60Co exposure which means, the biopolymer becomes more stable and is considered suitable for vast food industry applications.

Species distribution models are used to predict ideal grounds, species range, and spatial shifts in an ecology over a span of time. With an aim to use Maximum entropy model (MaxEnt), presence records and pseudo-absence points are used to predict the Tachypleus gigas spawning activity for 2030 and...

Horseshoe crabs have survived until Holocene but, their persistence beyond the Anthropocene is challenged by drastic environment modifications that entail impoverishments and the resultant unusual growth sizes. Previously, allometry via morphometric ratio was introduced to classify horseshoe...

The Tachypleus tridentatus (Chelicerata: Xiphosura) is an arthropod that usually displays high site fidelity by restricting its distribution to natal vicinities. Briefly, shore perturbation from boating (Kudat), electric, cyanide and bombing (Kunak) and tourism (Semporna) in Sabah can impair the T. tridentatus growth and produce sexually mature adults with unusual size. The 8-point morphometry of Tachypleus tridentatus from Kudat (Sulu Sea), Kunak and Semporna (Celebes Sea), produces the final output constituting accurate size classification for the species. Meanwhile, T. tridentatus are sexually dimorphic (p = 0.968-0.989), where male T. tridentatus (from Kudat) has prosoma width (27.75 +/- 2.68 cm) and weight (1050 +/- 610 g) in smaller ranges when compared to the female (33.27 +/- 4.68 cm; 3020 +/- 1480 g) using the same comparison. In addition, the T. tridentatus populations from Kunak (prosoma width: male = 28.91 +/- 1.48 cm, female = 29.44 +/- 5.47 cm; weight: male = 800 +/- 275 g; female = 2550 +/- 155 g) and Semporna (prosoma width: male = 21.73 +/- 1.34 cm, female = 24.42 +/- 1.36 cm; weight: male = 485 +/- 306 g, female = 1320 +/- 640 g) differed site-wise. The descriptive statistics (average and standard deviation) relate 7.1-23.0% of T. tridentatus with negative size class. However, the applied statistics using stepwise analysis and regression curve (r(2) = 0.566-0.833), relates 30.4% of T. tridentatus with negative size class. Considering weight to produce 100% T. tridentatus with positive size class, it is biased because some crabs are gravid with eggs and if attained unpaired (male and female), they may have recently fed. Therefore, the prosoma (male), interorbit (female) and telson lengths are identified as most appropriate for the size classification of T. tridentatus. Thus, the findings provide a novel baseline for conservation studies that monitor symmetrical and unusual growth in the T. Tridentatus wild stocks.