Biodegradable polymers have been used for over four decades as temporary devices and carriers to improve human health. These materials should possess specific physical, chemical, biological, functional, biomechanical, and degradation properties that fit the biomedical application. Biodegradable polymers have been used as surgical aids, extended release drug carriers, and scaffolds in tissue engineering. Traditional biodegradable products such as orthopaedic pins and nails, fixation plates, sutures nets and filaments, and homeostatic sponges have been used for decades with little modifications. However, recent developments in drug delivery, tissue engineering gene therapy and medical devices requires biopolymers with tailored properties. It should be noted that introducing a new polymeric device or drug delivery system requires extensive clinical development which may take a few years and significant financial investment. Thus, the trend has been to compromise on compositions and modifications of clinically used biodegradable polymers.
Biodegradable polymers derived from hydroxyl acids derived from fatty acid and amino acids have been synthesized and used for the preparation of injectable formulations for antibiotics and anticancer agents or tissue augmentation. Inflatable biodegradable balloons were prepared for in situ separation of tissues. Nasal spray nanoparticles loaded with a neuro-peptide have been developed for olfactory brain delivery.
The synthesis and applications of various biopolymers will be discussed
