Recent strategies to develop polysaccharide-based nanomaterials for biomedical applications.

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Polysaccharides are natural, renewable, and biodegradable polymers with abundant functional groups.
• These functional groups (hydroxyl, amino, carboxylic acid) enable chemical modification.
• Modified polysaccharides serve as key components in novel biomaterials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review recent strategies for modifying polysaccharides into advanced biomaterials.
• To highlight the fabrication of polysaccharide-based structures like micelles, hydrogels, and meshes.
• To discuss the future development of these biomaterials, focusing on drug delivery applications.

Main Methods:

• Chemical modification of polysaccharides using small molecules, polymers, and crosslinkers.
• Fabrication of various biomaterial architectures: self-assembled micelles, microgels/nanogels, 3D hydrogels, and fibrous meshes.
• Review of existing literature on polysaccharide-based biomaterial development.

Main Results:

• Modified polysaccharides are effective building blocks for diverse biomaterials.
• Polysaccharide-based materials are suitable for drug delivery carriers, cell encapsulation, and tissue engineering scaffolds.
• Specific structures like micelles and hydrogels can be tailored for targeted applications.

Conclusions:

• Polysaccharide modification is a powerful strategy for creating advanced biomaterials.
• These biomaterials hold significant potential for biomedical applications, particularly in drug delivery.
• Future research should focus on optimizing polysaccharide-based nanocarriers for intracellular and tumor-targeting delivery.