the formation of the semipermeable membrane in capsules,
alginate is one of the most frequently used owing
to the fact that its immobilization is carried out under
very mild conditions (3). In molecular terms, alginate
consists of a family of unbranched binary copolymers of
(1+4)-linked p-D-mannuronic acid (M) and a+guluronic
acid (G) of widely varying composition and sequential
structure (4). Alginates are true block copolymers composed
of homopolymeric regions of M and G, termed
MM and GG blocks, respectively, interspersed with regions
of alternating structure (MG blocks) (5). In solution,
alginates behave like flexible coils.