The future of poly(2-oxazoline)s

Abstract

Poly(2-oxazoline)s have gained significant interest in the past decade, especially driven by their high potential for biomedical applications, amongst others to substitute poly(ethylene glycol). Within this perspective article the emerging trends in the area of poly(2-oxazoline)s are discussed with a focus on synthetic advances, including the development of high molar mass polymers, the broadening of the cyclic imino ether monomer range, and the development of degradable poly(2-oxazoline) derivatives. Furthermore, emerging trends in the use of poly(2-oxazoline)s will be highlighted, including their use to study basic fundamental polymer properties, specific biomedical applications, including drug delivery and 3D scaffolds, as well as other applications as interlayers in organic devices and polymer gel electrolytes. Finally, this perspective article provides a discussion on the future vision for the area of poly(2-oxazoline)s.