Chitosan is obtained by the alkaline deacetylation of chitin, one of the most abundant biopolymers in nature, present in the exoskeletons of crustaceans and also the cell Imatinib chemical structure walls of fungi and insects (Kumar, 2000). One of the advantages of chitosan which attracts greatest interest is its versatility. This polymer can be easily

modified by chemical or physical processes to prepare chitosan derivatives. The material can be quickly modified physically and obtained in different forms including powder, nano particles, gel beads, membranes, sponge, honeycomb, fibres or hollow fibres. The presence of a high percentage of reactive amino groups, generally higher than 80%, distributed in its polymeric matrix, allows chemical changes to be carried out. The chemical modification of chitosan may be necessary to prevent the dissolution of the polymer when the reactions

are performed in acidic solutions, and/or to change its properties, such as improving its ability to adsorb metals (Guibal, 2004). This biopolymer has been crosslinked with different substances including glutaraldehyde, 1,1,3,3-tetramethoxypropane, MAPK Inhibitor Library cell assay ethyleneglycol diglycidyl ether, epichlorohydrin, glyoxal, carbodiimide, and tripolyphosphate and has been used in many different fields (Osifo et al., Clomifene 2008). Spray drying is a technique for the formation of microparticles which has been used by researchers for different ends. It is employed in a wide variety of processes ranging from the manufacture of food products to pharmaceuticals (Tonon, Brabet, & Hubinger, 2008). This well-established technique has been around for over a century, but it remains an active field of innovation, driven by the ever increasing demand for more sophisticated particles.

It has many advantages over other techniques for the preparation of particles, such as excellent reproducibility and speed in obtaining the microspheres (Vehring, Foss, & Lechuga-Ballesteros, 2007). It is used to produce dry powder from solutions or suspensions in three steps of operation: atomization of the liquid feed, drying of the droplets once they are formed, and motion of the droplets to model the spray drying process (Shabde & Hoo, 2008). The atomization of the biopolymer chitosan by this technique is generally used in pharmacological processes, especially in controlled-drug delivery systems, and produces good results. Recently, the spray drying technique has been employed to obtain microspheres of chitosan crosslinked with 8-hydroxyquinoline-5-sulphonic acid and glutaraldehyde, as a new adsorbent for metallic ions (Vitali, Laranjeira, Gonçalves, & Favere, 2008).