title: Dendritic polyglycerol: a new versatile biocompatible-material.
abstract: Polyglycerol represents the first hyperbranched polymer that can be prepared in a controlled synthesis. It is characterized by the combination of a stable, biocompatible polyether scaffold, high-end group functionality and a compact, well-defined dendrimer-like architecture. These characteristics can be used to generate new materials properties and for biomedical applications to molecularly amplify or multiply effects or to create extremely high local concentrations of drugs, molecular labels, or probe moieties. Therefore, dendritic polyglycerols are expected to lead to new strategies for 'molecular medicine'. In this brief summary, the current state of the art in polyglycerol research is given, focusing on applications in life sciences.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Makromolekulare Chemie, Hermann-Staudinger Haus und Freiburger Materialforschungszentrum F M F, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg, Freiburg/Brsg., Germany. holfrey@fmf.uni-freiburg
authors.forename: Holger
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Frey
authors.forename: Rainer
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Haag
mesh_terms: D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D001673:Biodegradation, Environmental; D001709:Biotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D005990:Glycerol / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D011108:Polymers; D005990:Glycerol