title: Towards the development of polycaprolactone based amphiphilic block copolymers: molecular design, self-assembly and biomedical applications.
abstract: Polycaprolactone (PCL) and its copolymers are a type of hydrophobic aliphatic polyester based on hydroxyalkanoic acids. They possess exceptional qualities: biocompatibility; FDA approval for clinical use; biodegradability by enzyme and hydrolysis under physiological conditions and low immunogenicity. These critical properties have facilitated their value as sutures, drug delivery vehicles and tissue engineering scaffolds in pharmaceutical and biomedical applications. However, the hydrophobicity of PCL and its copolymers remains a concern for further biological and biomedical applications. One promising approach is to design and synthesize well-controlled PCL-based amphiphilic block copolymers. This review summarizes recent advances in the synthesis and self-assembly of PCL-containing amphiphilic block copolymers and their bio-related applications including drug delivery and tissue engineering.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research), 3 Research Link, Singapore 117602, Singapore.
authors.forename: Zibiao
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Materials Research and Engineering, A*STAR (Agency for Science, Technology and Research), 3 Research Link, Singapore 117602, Singapore. Electronic address: tanmj@imre.a-star.edu.sg.
authors.forename: Beng Hoon
authors.initials: BH
authors.lastname: Tan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004337:Drug Carriers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D023822:Tissue Engineering
chemical_list: D004337:Drug Carriers; D020100:Hydrogels; D004364:Pharmaceutical Preparations; D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; C016240:polycaprolactone
keywords: Amphiphilic block copolymers; Drug delivery; Polycaprolactone; Self-assembly; Tissue engineering