Modern Approaches to the Medical Use of pH- and Temperature-Sensitive Copolymer Hydrogels (Review)

Abstract

This article provides the review of the medical use of pH- and temperature-sensitive polymer hydrogels. Such polymers are characterised by their thermal and pH sensitivity in aqueous solutions at the functioning temperature of living organisms and can react to the slightest changes in environmental conditions. Due to these properties, they are called stimuli-sensitive polymers. This response to an external stimulus occurs due to the amphiphilicity (diphilicity) of these (co)polymers. The term hydrogels includes several concepts of macrogels and microgels. Microgels, unlike macrogels, are polymer particles dispersed in a liquid and are nano- or micro-objects. The review presents studies reflecting the main methods of obtaining
such polymeric materials, including precipitation polymerisation, as the main, simplest, and most accessible method for mini-emulsion polymerisation, microfluidics, and layer-by-layer adsorption of polyelectrolytes. Such systems will undoubtedly be promising for use in biotechnology and medicine due to the fact that they are liquid-swollen particles capable of binding and carrying various low to high molecular weight substances. It is also important that slight heating and cooling or a slight change in the pH of the medium shifts the system from a homogeneous to a heterogeneous state and vice versa. This provides
the opportunity to use these polymers as a means of targeted drug delivery, thereby reducing the negative effect of toxic substances used for treatment on the entire body and directing the action to a specific point. In addition, such polymers can be used to create smart coatings of implanted materials, as well as an artificial matrix for cell and tissue regeneration, contributing to a significant increase in the survival rate and regeneration rate of cells and tissues.

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