Abstract
Polymers in which phosphorus is an integral part of the main chain, including polyphosphazenes and polyphosphoesters, have been widely investigated in recent years for their potential in a number of therapeutic applications. Phosphorus, as the central feature of these polymers, endears the chemical functionalization, and in some cases (bio)degradability, to facilitate their use in such therapeutic formulations. Recent advances in the synthetic polymer chemistry have allowed for controlled synthesis methods in order to prepare the complex macromolecular structures required, alongside the control and reproducibility desired for such medical applications. While the main polymer families described herein, polyphosphazenes and polyphosphoesters and their analogues, as well as phosphorus-based dendrimers, have hitherto predominantly been investigated in isolation from one another, this review aims to highlight and bring together some of this research. In doing so, the focus is placed on the essential, and often mutual, design features and structure–property relationships that allow the preparation of such functional materials. The first part of the review details the relevant features of phosphorus-containing polymers in respect to their use in therapeutic applications, while the second part highlights some recent and innovative applications, offering insights into the most state-of-the-art research on phosphorus-based polymers in a therapeutic context.
Highlights
Polymers are ubiquitous in medical applications, with polymer-based materials filling a wide range of essential roles, many in everyday use or in clinical translation and with many more in the development pipelines [1]
While main-chain phosphorus-containing polymers have been of interest for therapeutic applications for many decades, there has been a significant expansion of reports in the last 5 years, suggesting a blossoming research field
This is in part due, as described in the first half of this review, to the advent of controlled polymerization routes, which allow for controlled molecular weights and facilitate the preparation of higher architectures and self-assembled nanostructures
Summary
Polymers are ubiquitous in medical applications, with polymer-based materials filling a wide range of essential roles, many in everyday use or in clinical translation and with many more in the development pipelines [1]. In terms of synthetic polymers, there is a substantial research field in which phosphorus exists as a (mostly) pendant group on organic, carbon main-chain, polymers [7]. These polymers are of immense interest for biomedical applications, which is based mostly on the premise of the biomimetic nature of phosphorylcholine-containing (co)polymers [7]. A better fundamental understanding of the structure–property relationships for these polymer families has been combined with vast improvements in controlled polymerization methods This has allowed for the preparation of materials with evermore finely tuned macromolecular structures, and with it, more advanced and precise tailor-made properties.
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