Abstract
Biodegradable polyesters gain significant attention because of their wide potential biomedical applications. The ring-opening polymerization method is widely used to obtain such polymers, due to high yields and advantageous properties of the obtained material. The preparation of new, effective, and bio-safe catalytic systems for the synthesis of biomedical polymers is one of the main directions of the research in modern medical chemistry. The new diethylzinc/propyl gallate catalytic system was first used in the copolymerization of ε-caprolactone and rac-lactide. In this paper, the activity of the new zinc-based catalytic system in the copolymerization of cyclic esters depending on the reaction conditions was described. The microstructure analysis of the obtained copolyesters and their toxicity studies were performed. Resulted copolyesters were characterized by low toxicity, moderate dispersity (1.19–1.71), varying randomness degree (0.18–0.83), and average molar mass (5300–9800 Da).
Highlights
In recent years, biodegradable and bioresorbable homo- and copolyesters based on cyclic monomers: rac-lactide, L,L-lactide (LLA), ε-caprolactone (CL), glycolide (GL), and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) were widely tested for their potential use in biomedical applications [1,2].These applications include sutures, drug delivery systems, implants [3] and tissue engineering [4]. Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) exhibits favorable biocompatibility and mechanical properties, it biodegrades in vivo very slowly—from a few months to several years [5]
The catalytic system was synthesized by the reaction of PGA with 3 propyl gallate (PGA) is used as an additive (E310) in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and food due to its molar equivalent of ZnEt2
PGA has been used as a bio-safe co-initiator of the ring-opening polymerization (ROP) process
Summary
Biodegradable and bioresorbable homo- and copolyesters based on cyclic monomers: rac-lactide (rac-LA), L,L-lactide (LLA), ε-caprolactone (CL), glycolide (GL), and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) were widely tested for their potential use in biomedical applications [1,2].These applications include sutures, drug delivery systems (e.g., drug nano- or microcarriers or macromolecular prodrugs), implants [3] and tissue engineering [4]. Poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) exhibits favorable biocompatibility and mechanical properties, it biodegrades in vivo very slowly—from a few months to several years [5]. Biodegradable and bioresorbable homo- and copolyesters based on cyclic monomers: rac-lactide (rac-LA), L,L-lactide (LLA), ε-caprolactone (CL), glycolide (GL), and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) were widely tested for their potential use in biomedical applications [1,2]. These applications include sutures, drug delivery systems (e.g., drug nano- or microcarriers or macromolecular prodrugs), implants [3] and tissue engineering [4]. Polylactide (PLA) displays variable biodegradation time, ranging from several weeks to about two years [6]. Co- or terpolymers of CL, rac-LA, LLA, GL, or TMC characterized by various microstructures allow obtaining the assumed time of polymer biodegradation and high controlled release of active substances from the polymeric carrier [7]
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