Poly lactide

Several parenteral microencapsulated products have been commercialized the cote materials ate polypeptides with hormonal activity. Poly(lactide— glycohde) copolymers ate the sheU materials used. The capsules ate produced by solvent evaporation, polymer-polymer phase separation, or spray-dry encapsulation processes. They release their cote material over a 30 day period in vivo, although not at a constant rate. 

Noncrystalline aromatic polycarbonates (qv) and polyesters (polyarylates) and alloys of polycarbonate with other thermoplastics are considered elsewhere, as are aHphatic polyesters derived from natural or biological sources such as poly(3-hydroxybutyrate), poly(glycoHde), or poly(lactide) these, too, are separately covered (see Polymers, environmentally degradable Sutures). Thermoplastic elastomers derived from poly(ester—ether) block copolymers such as PBT/PTMEG-T [82662-36-0] and known by commercial names such as Hytrel and Riteflex are included here in the section on poly(butylene terephthalate). Specific polymers are dealt with largely in order of volume, which puts PET first by virtue of its enormous market volume in bottie resin. 

Poly(lactide-coglycolide). Mixtures of lactide and glycolide monomers have been copolymerised in an effort to extend the range of polymer properties and rates of in vivo absorption. Poly(lactide- (9-glycolide) polymers undergo a simple hydrolysis degradation mechanism, which is sensitive to both pH and the presence of ensymes (32). 

The crystallinity of poly(lactide- (9-glycoHde) samples has been studied (36). These copolymers are amorphous between the compositional range of 25—70 mol % glycoHde. Pure polyglycoHde was found to be about 50% crystalline whereas pure poly-L-lactide was about 37% crystalline. An amorphous poly(L-lactide-i (9-glycoHde) copolymer is used in surgical cHps and staples (37). The preferred composition chosen for manufacture of cHps and staples is the 70/30 L-lactide/glycoHde copolymer. 

Throughout the 1990s a large portion of the research and development effort for hot melt adhesives focused on developing adhesives that are either environmentally friendly or functional [69,81,82]. Environmentally friendly attributes include biodegradability, water dispersibility (repulpability), renewability, and water releasability. Biodegradable adhesives have been developed based on starch esters [83-86] and polyesters such as poly (hydroxy butyrate/hydroxy valerate) [87], poly(lactide) [88-91], and poly(hydroxy ether esters) [92-94]. All but the... 

Recently, Brich and coworkers (40) reported the synthesis of lactide/glycolide polymers branched with different polyols. Polyvinyl-alcohol and dextran acetate were used to afford polymers exhibiting degradation profiles significantly different from that of linear poly-lactides. The biphasic release profile often observed with the linear polyesters was smoothened somewhat to a monophasic profile. Further, the overall degradation rate is accelerated. It was speculated that these polymers can potentially afford more uniform drug release kinetics. This potential has not yet been fully demonstrated. 

Lactic acid oligomer microspheres containing aclarubicin have been studied for selective lymphatic delivery. Low (less than 10,000 molecular weight oligomers were used to produce microspheres designed to release drug over a 30-day period (99). Additives have been used to alter the release rate of aclarubicin-loaded poly(lactide) microspheres (100). Mitomycin C was incorporated into poly(lactic... 

PD Scholes, AGA Coombes, L Ilium, SS Davis, M Yert, MC Davies. The preparation of sub-200 nm poly (lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres for site-specific drug delivery. J Control Rel 25 145-153, 1993. 

R Bodmeier, HG Chen. Evaluation of biodegradable poly(lactide) pellets prepared by direct compression. J Pharm Sci 78 819-822, 1989. 

These representative aliphatic polyesters are often used in copolymerized form in various combinations, for example, poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) [66-68] and poly(lactide-co-caprolactone) [69-73], to improve degradation rates, mechanical properties, processability, and solubility by reducing crystallinity. Other monomers such as 1,4-dioxepan-5-one (DXO) [74—76], 1,4-dioxane-2-one [77], and trimethylene carbonate (TMC) [28] (Fig. 2) have also been used as comonomers to improve the hydrophobicity of the aliphatic polyesters as well as their degradability and mechanical properties. 

Poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA), 13 741 Polylactide nanocomposites, improved, 20 308... 

AI700/poly-lactide-co-glycolide -1- PEG fluorocarbon Clinical trials [35]... 

Mallery SR, Shenderova A, Pei P, Begum S, Giminieri JR, Wilson RF, Gasto BG, Schuller DE, Morse MA, Effects of 10-hydroxycamptothecin, delivered from locally injectable poly(lactide-co-glycolide) microspheres, in a murine human oral squamous cell carcinoma regression model, Anticancer Res 21 1713-1722, 2001. 

Acknowledgement Special thanks to Urs J. Haenggi (Biomer) for information about biotechnological PHB synthesis and literature on stereocomplex formation of poly(lactide). We are also grateful to Dr. Carly Anderson and Dr. Sergei Vagin for their help with this article, as well as Benedikt Simon Soller and Simon Meister for their extensive help with the literature research. 

Recent Developments in Metal-Catalyzed Ring-Opening Polymerization of Lactides and Glycolides Preparation of Poly lactides, Polyglycolide, and Poly(lactide-co-glycolide)... 

Keywords Metal catalysts Poly(glycolide) Poly(lactide) Poly(lactide-co-glycolide) Ring-opening polymerization Stereocontrol... 

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