Cyclodextrins (also called cycloamyloses) are a family of compounds made up of sugar molecules bound together in a ring (hence can be classified as cyclic oligosaccharides).
Cyclodextrins are composed of 5 or more glucose units linked1,4, as in a mylose (a fragment of starch). The 5-membered macrocycle is not very stable. The largest well-characterized cyclodextrin contains 32 glucose units, while a 150-membered cyclic oligosaccharide has been claimed to have been prepared recently. Normally cyclodextrins contain glucose monomers ranging from six to eight units in a ring, creating a conical shape:
(alpha)-cyclodextrin: 6-membered sugar ring molecule.
(beta)-cyclodextrin: 7-membered sugar ring molecule.
(gamma)-cyclodextrin: 8-membered sugar ring molecule
Cyclodextrins, as they are known today, were called “cellulosine” when first described by A. Villiers in 1891. Soon after,....
