Tragacanth gum is a natural dry rubber anionic polysaccharide, a hydrocolloid highly resistant to acids and has been accepted since 1961 as GRAS (a level of approval of the Food and Drug Administration, USA) at the level of 0.2 -1.3% (Anderson and Bridgeman 1985).

Tragacanth gum consists of two components: 1. Bassorin (insoluble in water and capable of swelling and forming gel) and 2. Tragacanthin (soluble in water and capable of the forming colloidal solution); and the following sugar: arabinose, xylose, glucose, fructose, galactose, rhamnose, and galacturonic acid. This gum has good emulsifying properties, suspension performance, and stability to heat and acidity which is widely used in various foods as a stabilizer, thickener, and lipid alternative. This gum has good emulsifying properties, suspension performance, and stability to heat and acidity which is widely used in various foods as a stabilizer, thickener, and lipid alternative (1).

It may represent an alternative polymeric vector for physiologically important peptides and proteins. The characterization of tragacanth gum is therefore essential to provide a basis for possible applications (2).

It is obtained from the plants of the Fabaceae family and, in particular, from the Astragalus gummifer.

What it is used for and where

Food

Ingredient included in the list of European food additives as E413.  It is used as a softener, thickener, binder, stabilizer in bakery products.

Medical

Together with carboxylated copolymers, it is useful as an adjuvant in wound healing (3) and in the treatment of pressure ulcers (4).

Used as a painkiller, tonic, diuretic.

Cosmetics

Binder agent. Ingredient that is used in cosmetic, food and pharmaceutical products as an anti-caking agent with the function of making the product in which it is incorporated silky, compact and homogenous. The binder, either natural such as mucilage, gums and starches or chemical, may be in the form of a powder or liquid.

Emulsion stabilizer. Emulsions are thermodynamically unstable. Emulsion stabilisers improve the formation and stability of single and double emulsions. It should be noted that in the structure-function relationship, molar mass plays an important role.

Film-forming agent. It produces a continuous ultra-thin film with an optimal balance of cohesion, adhesion and stickiness on the skin or hair to counteract or limit damage from external phenomena such as chemicals, UV rays and pollution.

Fragrance. It plays a decisive and important role in the formulation of cosmetic products as it provides the possibility of enhancing, masking or adding fragrance to the final product, increasing its marketability.  The consumer always expects to find a pleasant or distinctive scent in a cosmetic product.

Viscosity control agent. It controls and adapts viscosity to the required level for optimal chemical and physical stability of the product and dosage in gels, suspensions, emulsions, solutions. 

Molecular weight: 840000

CAS: 9000-65-1

References_________________________________________________________________________

(1) Effects of quince seed, almond, and tragacanth gum coating on the banana slices properties during the process of hot air drying.
  -  Farahmandfar R, Mohseni M, Asnaashari M.  -  Food Sci Nutr. 2017 Jul 6;5(6):1057-1064. doi: 10.1002/fsn3.489.

(2) Tragacanth as an oral peptide and protein delivery carrier: Characterization and mucoadhesion.
  -  Nur M, Ramchandran L, Vasiljevic T.  -  Carbohydr Polym. 2016 Jun 5;143:223-30. doi: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2016.01.074. 

(3) Modification of bacterial cellulose/keratin nanofibrous mats by a tragacanth gum-conjugated hydrogel for wound healing.  Azarniya A, Tamjid E, Eslahi N, Simchi A.  Int J Biol Macromol. 2019 Aug 1;134:280-289. doi: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.05.023.

(4) Effectiveness of Tragacanth Gel Cushions in Prevention of Pressure Ulcer in Traumatic Patients: a Randomized Controlled Trial.  Shakibamehr J, Rad M, Akrami R, Rad M.  J Caring Sci. 2019 Mar 1;8(1):45-49. doi: 10.15171/jcs.2019.007