Conducting polymers, biomedical applications

Chemical structure of monomers and intermediates was confirmed by FT-IR and FT-NMR. Molecular weight distribution of polymers was assessed by GPC and intrinsic viscosity. The thermal property was examined by differential scanning calorimetry. The hydrolytic stability of the polymers was studied under in vitro conditions. With controlled drug delivery as one of the biomedical applications in mind, release studies of 5-fluorouracil and methotrexate from two of these polymers were also conducted. 

Applications. Polymers with small alkyl substituents, particularly (13), are ideal candidates for elastomer formulation because of quite low temperature flexibility, hydrolytic and chemical stability, and high temperature stability. The ability to readily incorporate other substituents (in addition to methyl), particularly vinyl groups, should provide for conventional cure sites. In light of the biocompatibility of polysiloxanes and P—O- and P—N-substituted polyphosphazenes, poly(alkyl/arylphosphazenes) are also likely to be biocompatible polymers. Therefore, biomedical applications can also be envisaged for (3). A third potential application is in the area of solid-state batteries. The first steps toward ionic conductivity have been observed with polymers (13) and (15) using lithium and silver salts (78). 

Gum Arabica is a natural plant gum that exudates a carbohydrate type and is an electroactive biopolymer. Gum Arabica and its complexes have potential applications in developing ionic devices such as batteries, sensors, bio-sensors, and other electronic applications, in addition to solar material, energy storage material and nanoscience. Biopolymers obtained from bacteria are rapidly emerging because they are biodegradable and available in abundance. Simple methods are being developed to grow and harvest the polymers to exploit them for numerous industrial and biomedical applications. Electronic structures and conduction properties of biopolymers are also discussed in Part III. 

P. L.Nayak is an eminent polymer scientist and is now the Chairman of P.L.Nayak Research Foundation, Cuttack, India. He possesses both PhD and DSc Degrees in Polymer Science and Technology. He has done extensive research work on biopolymers, polymers for biomedical applications, nanomedicine, nanobiotechnology, controlled drug delivery and conducting polymers. About 80 of his students have been awarded a PhD Degree. He has published more than 400 peer reviewed research papers in international journals in various fields of Polymer Science and Technology. 

NP of the conducting polymer poly(N-ethylaniline) and poly(N-methylaniline) can be prepared using a green approach, i.e., photocatalytic oxidative polymerisation. These polymeric nanomaterials exhibit enhanced antimicrobial activity against various pathogenic bacteria and therefore, find potential applications in biomedical sciences. 

Successful incorporation of magnetic nanoparticles into a conductive polymer matrix will definitely widen their applicability in the fields of electronics, biomedical dmg delivery, and optics. These doubly functionalized nanocomposites will exhibit the magnetic properties of the magnetic particles and the conducting properties of the conductive-polymer matrices. However, one of the challenges so far is the abihty to integrate a high... 

Table 18.1 Sample of the variety of polymer, dopant and solvent combinations investigated for conducting polymers in biomedical applications...

CPs designed for biomedical applications generally require good electrical conductivity, physicochemical and mechanical stability, and biocompatibility to effectively interact with biological system. A wide range of analytical techniques to characterize the feasibility of conducting polymers as biomaterials are summarized here. 

TABLE 2.1 Conducting Polymers Commonly Used in Biomedical Applications [25]... 

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