Provided herein are methods and systems for producing biodegradable beta-propiolactone-based polyester polymers from renewable EO and CO on an industrial scale.

Described are shape-memory polymers that have a composite prepolymer crosslinked with a stoichiometric amount of a multifunctional crosslinker, the composite prepolymer having a branched or telechelic prepolymer having a low polydispersity reacted with a non-crystalline chain extender. Also described are methods of making shape-memory polymers by reacting a branched or telechelic prepolymer having a low polydispersity with a non-crystalline chain extender to form a composite prepolymer, and crosslinking a stoichiometric amount of a multifunctional crosslinker with the composite prepolymer, thereby forming the shape-memory polymer.

The invention relates to polyesters consisting of: A) an acid component composed of: a1) 25 to 100 mol % based on the components a1) and a2) of 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid or its esters or mixtures thereof a2) 0 to 75 mol % based on the components a1) and a2) of an aliphatic C.sub.4-C.sub.36-dicarboxylic acid or its esters or mixtures thereof and a3) 1 to 10 mol % based on the components a1) to a3) of a sulfonate-containing compound, wherein the mol percentages of the components a1) to a3) sum to 100, and B) a diol component composed of: b1) 98 to 100 mol % based on the components a1) to a3) of component A of a C.sub.2- to C.sub.12-alkanediol or mixtures thereof and b2) 0 to 2 mol % based on the components a1) to a3) of a branching agent comprising at least 3 functional groups; and optionally further components.

The invention further relates to the production of the polyesters and the use thereof and also to aqueous dispersions and polyester mixtures comprising these polyesters.

The present invention relates to a novel ester monomer susceptible to ring opening polymerization where the monomer comprise a functional group that may be transformed into thiols or SS groups which allows further functionalization. The present invention also relates to polymers and co-polymers derived from said monomer.

Disclosed are compositions comprising polymeric nanoparticles and methods of using the same. The polymeric nanopartides can be conjugated with a targeting ligand that is a substrate for a solid tumor-specific cell protein. The polymeric nanoparticles can also comprises an imaging compound and/or a therapeutic agent encapsulated in the hydrophobic interior of the nanoparticle. A cancer therapeutic composition comprising the nanoparticle is also disclosed. The disclosed nanoparticles can be used to target and deliver imaging and/or therapueitc compounds to cancer cells, thereby identifying and/or treating a solid tumor cell target. Methods for treating cancer, such as lung cancer, using the polymeric nanoparticles are also disclosed.

The disclosure provides a method of preparing a polymer scaffold including admixing a biotinylated reagent and a polymer to form a biotinylated polymer, subjecting the biotinylated polymer to conditions sufficient to form the polymer scaffold and optionally admixing the polymer scaffold with a streptavidin-modified biomolecule to form a biomolecule-modified polymer scaffold. The disclosure further provides a method of preparing a polymer scaffold including admixing a first click chemistry reagent and a poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) polymer to form a modified PLGA polymer, subjecting the modified PLGA polymer to conditions sufficient to form the polymer scaffold, and optionally admixing the polymer scaffold with a biomolecule modified to include a second click chemistry reagent that selectively reacts with the first click chemistry reagent, to form a biomolecule-modified polymer scaffold.

The present invention provides cyclic dimers of alpha acids and polymers derived therefrom. Also provided are processes for preparing and methods of using the cyclic dimers and the polymers derived from the cyclic dimers.

Polyester compositions are disclosed herein, as well as methods of making and using such polyesters. In some embodiments, the polyesters are formed from monomers derived from natural oils. In some embodiments, the polyesters are highly branched polymers, such as highly branched polymers that have low viscosity at higher molecular weights.

Described are shape-memory polymers that have a branched or telechelic prepolymer having a low polydispersity crosslinked with a stoichiometric amount of a multifunctional crosslinker. Also described are methods of making shape-memory polymers by crosslinking a stoichiometric amount of a multifunctional crosslinker with a branched or telechelic prepolymer having a low polydispersity. Methods of measuring the energy storage capacity of a shape-memory polymer are also disclosed.

The invention belongs to the field of macromolecules and biomedical materials, and relates to a polymer, a block copolymer comprising the polymer as a segment, methods for preparing the polymer and for preparing the block copolymer, a micelle particle or a vesicle particle prepared from the block copolymer, and a composition comprising the polymer, the block copolymer, the micelle particle and/or the vesicle particle. The polymer provided in the invention can be used as a novel biomedical material in in the fields such as pharmaceutical formulations, immunological formulations, and gene delivery reagents.