Enhancing the viscoelastic properties of bacterial cellulose hydrogels through ultrasonic and enzymatic modification of xyloglucan

Bacterial cellulose (BC) hydrogels exhibit nanofibril porous network with good viscoelasticity for use as food ingredients and medical materials. Xyloglucan (XG), a hemicellulose with branching residues, can hybridize with BC to improve the hydrogel's extensibility. Thus, modifying the molecular structure of XG can fine-tune the viscoelastic properties of BC hydrogels. In this study, tamarind seed XG subjected to ultrasonic and enzymatic treatment was hybridized with BC to form composite materials. The results indicated that incorporating modified XG reduced the modulus and enhanced the viscous behaviour of BC to varying degrees. XG modified via ultrasonic treatment demonstrated a higher binding efficiency (19-22 %) with cellulose compared to enzymatically treated XG (11-13 %). The enzymatically treated XG improved the maximum elongation ratio to 57 %, but reduced the storage modulus to 30 kPa. Although ultrasonic-treated XG had a similar effect on the shear modulus, it had less impact on the extensibility of BC, with an elongation ratio of 38 %. Additionally, the incorporation of modified XG also regulated the nonlinear viscoelasticity of BC. These findings advance our understanding of the application of XG as a regulator of mechanical and rheological properties, broadening its utility in BC hydrogel formulations for the food industry and medical material development.