Formation of spherical and core-shell polymeric microparticles from glycopolymers

6-O-methacryloyl-α-d-glucoside 2 and 4-bromophenyl-6-O-methacryloyl-d-glucothioside 7, obtained by enzyme-catalyzed synthesis, have been homo-polymerized and copolymerized with styrene by a free radical process, yielding polymer materials with sugar moieties, attached to the polymer backbone via ester linkages. The results demonstrated that modifying the structural features of the monomers greatly affected the thermal and rheological properties of the polymers. The polymer materials obtained have been characterized by NMR, MALDI-MS, DSC, AFM, and EWC (equilibrium water content). The AFM images indicated the formation of spherical and core-shell polymeric microparticles.