• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.206-212
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• 2008

Alginate obtained from marine brown algae, is a copolymer with repeating units of $\alpha$-($1{\rightarrow}4$)-L-guluronic acid(G) and $\beta$-($1{\rightarrow}4$)-D-mannuronic acid(M). It has good properties such as biocompatibility, non-toxicity. and hydrophilicity. However, alginate alone cannot be electrospun due to high viscosity and conductivity. To solve this problem. electro spinning of sodium alginate(SA) was performed by blending with poly(ethylene oxide)(PEO) and poly(vinyl alcohol)(PVA) in this study. Characteristics of SA/PEO nanofibers and SA/PVA nanofibers were estimated by SEM and XRD analyses. Optimal nanofiber webs are obtained from 2/2 wt% of SA/PEO and 2/7 wt% of SA/PVA. SA/PEO and SA/PVA nanofiber webs may have potentials for tissue engineering scaffold and wound dressing.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.33 no.6
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• pp.620-624
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• 2009

Biomedical metal implants have been used clinically for replacement, restoration, or improvement of injury bodies based on high mechanical properties, but it has some risks such as the inflammatory, late thrombosis, or restenosis due to the low biocompatibility and toxicity. In various techniques of surface treatment developed to preserve these drawbacks, this study examined the electrospray coating technology with biodegradable poly (lactic-co-glycoic acid) (PLGA) on metal surface. Based on fundamental examination of electrospraying and solution parameters, the surface morphology of coated film was closely related to the boiling point of solvent, in-flight distance, and droplet size. The thickness of polymer film was linearly proportional to the emerged volume. This result exhibits that the polymeric droplets were continuously deposited on the polymer film. Therefore, the electrospray coating technology might be applied into the fabrication of single/multi-layered polymer film in nano-/micro-thickness and the control of the topology for biomedical metal implants including stents.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.533-538
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• 2013

Sodium chloride is present in our body fluids, and the blood contains approximately 0.9 wt% salt, which plays an important role in maintaining the osmotic pressure. However, the amount of salt intake has consistently increased, and an excessive intake can be the cause of high blood pressure, etc. In this study, it was investigated in vivo and in vitro whether biocompatible ionic polymers with K or Ca ions can be replaced by Na ions through an ion exchange process to be excreted. Among the polymers, Ca-polystyrene sulfonate, K-polystyrene sulfonate, Ca-carrageenan, and Ca-tamarind had an excellent Na exchange ability in the body temperature, simulated gastric fluid and also simulated intestinal fluid. The mechanism of Na removal by absorption and excretion without changing food taste in the mouth through the insolubility properties of these polymers is expected to be a solution for the current problems related with excess sodium intake.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.344-351
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• 2004

Poly(ethylene glycol)-based diblock and triblock polyester copolymers stimulating to temperature were studied as injectable biomaterials in drug delivery system because of their nontoxicity, biocompatibility and biodegradability. We synthesized the diblock copolymers consisting of methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) (MPEG) (M$_{n}$=750 g/mole) and poly($\varepsilon$-caprolactone) (PCL) by ring opening polymerization of $\varepsilon$-CL with MPEG as an initiator in the presence of HCl . Et$_2$O. The aqueous solution of synthesized diblock copolymers represented sol phase at room temperature and a sol to gel phase transition as the temperature increased from room temperature to body temperature. To confirm the in vivo gel formation, we observed the formation of gel in the mice body after injection of 20 wt% aqueous solution of each block copolymer. After 2 months, we observed the maintenance of gel without dispersion in mice. In this study, we synthesized diblock copolymers exhibiting sol-gel phase transition and confirmed the feasibility as biomaterials of injectable implantation.n.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.48 no.2
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• pp.178-184
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• 2010

The aim of this work is the fabrication of polyelectrolyte microcapsules composed of biocompatible polymers such as chitosan, heparin and alginate, to encapsulate the fluorescein isothiocyanate(FITC)-albumin, and to investigate the protein release behavior therefrom. Polyelectrolyte capsules with 4-layer structures could be prepared with biocompatible materials by oppositely charged adsorption using melamin-foramide as a template. Transmission electron microscope(TEM), scanning electron microscope(SEM) and optical microscope confirmed hollow capsule structures. Protein release before and after encapsulation was monitored with a UV-Vis spectrometer. Microcapsules have different behaviors depending on the kind of polyelectrolyte polymers, chitosan-heparin capsules or chitosan-alginate capsules. In conclusion, the polyelectrolyte multilayer shells can be switched between an open and closed state by means of tuning the pH value.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.143-149
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• 2008

We synthesized PEG-PLA (or PLGA) amphiphilic di-block copolymers, which consist of PEG as biocompatible and hydrophilic block and PLA (or PLGA) as biodegradable and hydrophobic block, by ring opening polymerization of LA in the presence of methoxy PEG as a macroinitiator. The compositions and the molecular weights of the copolymers were controlled by changing the feed ratio of LA (and GA) to PEG initiator. The di-block copolymers could self-assemble in aqueous media to form micellar structure. A hydrophobic model drug, pioglitazone, was loaded into the polymer micelle using solid dispersion and dialysis methods, and the drug-loaded micelles were characterized by AFM, DLS and HPLC measurements. The drug loading capacity and in vitro release studies were performed and evaluated under various conditions. These results indicated that the amphiphilic di-block copolymers of PEG-PLA (or PLGA) could solubilize pioglitazone by solid dispersion method and the drug release was modulated according to micellar chemical compositions.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.36 no.2
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• pp.149-154
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• 2012

The amphiphilic copolymer by the conjugation of biocompatible chitosan and antioxidant lipoic acid was studied as a drug delivery carrier. The amphiphilic copolymer was self-assembled to form nanoparticles in the aqueous solution. 5-Fluorouracil widely used as an anticancer drug was encapsulated inside the nanoparticles by a solid dispersion method. The degree of branching of lipoic acid on chitosan was controlled to obtain the optimal condition for the drug delivery carrier. The sizes of nanoparticles were about 250 nm by the dynamic light scattering. The encapsulation efficiency of nanoparticles were about 10%. The copolymer with 42% degree of branching showed the best performance as a drug delivery carrier.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.28 no.1
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• pp.86-91
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• 2004

Hydrogels with enhanced biocompatibility and biostability were prepared by copolymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) and sodium methacrylate (SMA) at high monomer concentration to replace a sponge which has limited applications as an implant material. It was found that incorporation of SMA moiety suppressed cytotoxicity. P(HEMA-co-SMA) hydrogel prepared at SMA feed ratio of 0.05 showed minimal cytotoxicity as compared with a normal cell culture plate. The adhesion and the spreading of cells were preferred on the surface of the hydrogel prepared with SMA feed ratio of 0.01. On the other hand, the hydrogel prepared with SMA feed ratio of 0.05 showed lower cell adhesion. Histological findings revealed no evidence of significant foreign body reaction in the tissues around the copolymer hydrogels. Conclusively, it is suggested that the hydrogels prepared by copolymerization of HEMA and SMA at high monomer concentration are strong candidates for an implant material with excellent biocompatibility and biostability.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.46 no.4
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• pp.722-726
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• 2008

Silica microsphere is a world leading innovative material used in adsorbent packing materials in HPLC technology. The application of microsphere lies in the ability to the surface modification of silica with the special materials such as polymers, metals and bio-active materials. Collagen is a major structural protein of connective tissues and has a good biocompatibility. In this study, we prepared the purified silica porous microsphere, having micro diameters in the range of a pore volume at least 50% by the aggregation procedure of colloidal silica with the polymerization method (PICA). The microspheres were modified by collagen hydrogel to improve the biocompatible properties for biomedical product. The silica/collagen microsphere composite doped with silver nanoparticles was prepared and investigated the capabilities of biomaterial application through the evaluation of the structure characteristics of the microsphere composit.

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.29 no.5
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• pp.518-521
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• 2005

Biodegradable polymers and hydrogels have been increasingly applied in a variety of biomedical applications including current drug delivery system and tissue engineering field. ${\alpha},\;{\beta}-Poly$(N-2-hydroxyethyl-DL-aspart-amide), PHEA. is one of poly(amino acids) with hydroxyethyl pendants, which is hewn to be biodegradable and potentially biocompatible. So that, the utilization and various chemical modifications of PHEA have been attempted for useful biomedical applications. In this wort chemical gels based on PHEA were prepared by crosslinking with diisocyanate compound in DMF in the presence of catalyst. Here, the PHEA was prepared from polysuccinimde, the thermal polycondensation product of aspartic acid, via ring-opening reaction with ethanolamine. The preparation of gels and their swelling behavior, depending on the different medium and pH, were investigated. Also the morphology by SEM and simple hydrolytic degradation were observed.