Synthetic biopolymer

Laser desorption Fourier transform mass spectrometry (LD-FTMS) results from a series of peptides and polymers are presented. Successful production of molecular ions of peptides with masses up to 2000 amu is demonstrated. The amount of structurally useful fragmentation diminishes rapidly with increasing mass. Preliminary results of laser photodissociation experiments in an attempt to increase the available structural information are also presented. The synthetic biopolymer poly(phenylalanine) is used as a model for higher molecular weight peptides and produces ions approaching m/z 4000. Current instrument resolution limits are demonstrated utilizing a polyethylene-glycol) polymer, with unit mass resolution obtainable to almost 4000 amu. 

New blends of synthetic biopolymers and PLA with better properties and processing performance. 

There are around thirty suppliers actively involved in the world biodegradable polymers market in 2005. The synthetic biopolymers market is dominated by large, global and vertically integrated chemical companies such as BASF, DuPont, and Mitsubishi Gas Chemicals. The starch and PLA sectors contain mainly specialist biopolymer companies such as Novamont, NatureWorks LLC, Rodenburg Biopolymers and Biotec, which were specifically established purely to develop biodegradable polymers. 

Other types of synthetic biopolymers that have been in use for medical applications for a number of years are polyglycolide, polydioxanone and poly(lactide-co-glycolide). 

The price of synthetic biopolymers has come down a little during the last three years. In 2005, the average cost of an aliphatic aromatic co-polyester biopolymer was between 2.75-3.65 per kg. In 2003, the average price of aliphatic aromatic co-polyesters was around 3.5-4.0 per kg. Prices are expected to fall further over time as production volumes increase and unit costs fall. 

Starch-based biopolymers are lower cost materials than some other biodegradable polymer types such as synthetic co-polyesters and PLA. They are produced from relatively cheap agricultural feedstock and have simpler manufacturing processes compared with synthetic biopolymers. 

Starch-based biodegradable polymers also have a better environmental image than synthetic biopolymers as they are based on sustainable resources, which open up marketing opportunities for brand owners who wish to promote their products as being packaged in materials based on sustainable resources. 

New product development is also playing an important role in driving the synthetic biopolymer market. For example, the launch of the Ecovio product by BASF in 2005 is expected to boost sales of synthetic biopolymers in flexible film applications. 

During the period 2000 to 2005, world consumption of synthetic biodegradable polymers has increased from 3,900 tonnes to 14,000 tonnes. In 2010, world consumption of synthetic biopolymers is projected to reach 32,800 tonnes. This represents a compound annual growth rate of 18.6% during the period 2005-2010. These forecasts assume that producers are successful in lowering the cost of production and that the price differential between synthetic biopolymers and standard thermoplastics continue to narrow. 

Western Europe is the leading market for synthetic biopolymers with 48% of total world consumption in 2005. Asia Pacific and North America each account for around 26% of consumption. 

Japan s IRe Chemicals also offers a polybutylene succinate product under the trade name EnPol 4000. Mitsubishi Gas Chemicals offers a PBS based synthetic biopolymer under the Iupex trade name. 

A recent review (146) examines the features of several synthetic biopolymers mimicking the structures of both peptides and nucleotides and critically analyzes the future opportunities for each unnatural oligomeric family of compounds. 

Presuming market prices are competitive, one route to development of larger markets for biomass in polymeric products is to convert biomass feedstocks to the same monomers that are used for synthesis of the large-volume polymers and copolymers from fossil-derived monomers. An alternative is to discover and develop natural and synthetic biopolymers that have superior or unique properties. Each of these approaches is discussed in the next section. 

Synthetic/Biopolymer Nanofibrous Composites as Dynamic Tissue Engineering Scaffolds... 

Interest in the polymerization of bicyclic compounds stems from possibilities offered in synthetic polymer chemistry by this group of monomers. Thus, polymerization of anhydro sugars, i.e. substituted bicyclic acetals, leads to synthetic biopolymers-polysaccharides or their analogs. Polymerization of certain bicyclic monomers provides systems expanding on conversion from monomer into polymer. 

Multiple reactor solid-phase synthesizers provide a high throughput of synthetic biopolymers. The same considerations as for a single synthesis should be applied to a multiple synthesis. The reaction kinetics and reagent requirements are generally quite similar. However, a synthesizer with many reactors often has some major design differences as compared with an instrument that contains only a few reactors. 

Broadly speaking, biomaterials used as supporting matrix for tissue repair applications must meet two requirements mechanical and structural similarity to the target tissues, and appropriate interactions with cells [5]. Synthetic biopolymers have attracted much attention because they display mechanical properties and degradation behaviors more suitable for some applications than their natural counterparts mentioned above. However, the synthetic biopolymers have disadvantages such as hydrophobicity and poor cell affinity as well as lack of biological responses [81]. It is a simple but effective strategy to combine synthetic biopolymers with... 

Elastin-like polypeptides (ELPs) are another class of synthetic biopolymers that consist of a repeating pentapeptide sequence that is represented in native elastin. The peptide sequence in ELPs is VPGXG, where X is any amino acid, except proline. ELPs are water soluble and can form micron- or sub-micron-sized aggregates moreover, they are biocompatible and nonimmunogenic, which in turn make it useful as a potent drug delivery system. ... 

Biomaterials have been defined as materials which are compatible with living systems. In order to be biocompatible with host tissues, the surface of an implant must posses suitable chemical, physical (surface morphology) and biological properties. Over the last 30 years, various biomaterials and their applications, as well as the applications of biopolymers and their biocomposites for medical applications have been reported. These materials can be classified into natural and synthetic biopolymers. Synthetic biopolymers are cheaper and possess better mechanical properties. However, because of the low biocompatibility of synthetic biopolymers compared with that of natural biopolymers, such as polysaccharides, lipids, and proteins, attention has turned towards natural biopolymers. On the other hand, natural biopolymers usually have weak mechanical properties, and therefore much effort has been made to improve them by blending with some filler. 

Poly(a-hydroxy acids), poly(glycolic acid), poly(lactic acid), and their copolymers Perhaps the most heavily researched types of synthetic biopolymers are PLA, PGA, their copolymers PLGA, PCL, poly(propylene fumarate) (PPF), and PHB (Seal et al., 2001). The poly(a-hydroxy acids), including PLA and PGA are broken down to their monomeric units lactic acid and glycolic acid through hydrolysis of the ester bonds in their backbones. These breakdown products are then simply cleared by natural metabolic pathways. To maintain the hydrolytic stability of the ester bond as well... 

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