Provided are a reducible degradable hyperbranched-polymer nanomicelle and a method for preparation thereof and an application thereof. Cystamine and polyethylene glycol diglycidyl ether are polymerized by means of a nucleophilic addition mechanism; in one step, a hyperbranched polymer alternatingly arising from cystamine and polyethylene glycol structural units is synthesized and obtained; then, a hyperbranched nanomicelle is formed by means of self-assembly during the process of dialysis. The hyperbranched-polymer chain segments contain both tertiary aminos and disulfide bond structural units and have pH- and reduction responsiveness, and the hyperbranched three-dimensional cavity structure imparts a drug-carrying ability to the nanomicelle.

Enteric elastomers and related methods are generally provided. In some embodiments, the enteric elastomer is a polymer composite. Certain embodiments comprise a polymer composite in which hydrogen bonds within two carboxyl group-containing polymers cross-link the polymer networks into an elastic and pH-responsive polymer composite. Advantageously, this polymer composite has the capacity of being stable and elastic in an acidic environment such as that of the stomach but can be dissolved in a neutral pH environment such as that of the small and large intestines. In some embodiments, the polymer composites described herein comprise a mixture of two or more polymers with carboxyl functionality such that the two or more polymers form hydrogen bonds. In certain embodiments, the polymer composite has both enteric and elastic properties.

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.

Certain embodiments comprise administering a residence structure to a subject (e.g., a patient) such that the residence structure is retained at a location internal to the subject for a particular amount of time (e.g., at least about 24 hours) before being released. In certain embodiments, the structure has a modular design, combining a material configured for controlled release of therapeutic, diagnostic, and/or enhancement agents with a structural material necessary for gastric residence but configured for controlled and/or tunable degradation/dissolution to determine the time at which retention shape integrity is lost and the structure passes out of the gastric cavity. For example, in certain embodiments, the residence structure comprises a first elastic component, a second component configured to release an active substance, and, optionally, a linker. In some such embodiments, the linker may be configured to degrade.

Described are gastric residence structures that include an active substance. The gastric residence structures may include one or more arms that include a loadable polymeric component, an elastic polymeric component, and a separate linker component. The linker may connect the one or more arms with the elastic polymeric component. The gastric residence structures may be configured to be folded and physically constrained during administration and may be configured to assume an open retention shape upon removal of a constraint. The change between the folded shape and the open retention shape may be mediated by the elastic polymeric component that undergoes elastic deformation when the residence structure is in the folded shape and recoils when the gastric residence structure assumes the open retention shape.

Described are methods of making a gastric residence structure including an active substance. The methods may include forming one or more arms comprising a loadable polymeric component, wherein the loadable polymeric component includes one or more polymeric materials and at least one active substance. The methods may also include connecting the one or more arms to an elastic polymeric component using a separate linker component. The gastric residence structures may be configured to be folded and physically constrained during administration and may be configured to assume an open retention shape upon removal of a constraint. The change between the folded shape and the open retention shape may be mediated by the elastic polymeric component that undergoes elastic deformation when the residence structure is in the folded shape and recoils when the gastric residence structure assumes the open retention shape.

Disclosed herein are the water clarification compositions and method of using the disclosed water clarification compositions for clarifying a water system or waste water source. Specifically, the disclosed compositions comprise and methods use multiple charged cationic or anionic compounds that are derived from polyamines through an aza-Michael addition with an activated olefin having an ionic group. The disclosed water clarification methods or compositions are found to be more effective than those methods or compositions including commonly used single quaternary compounds for reducing turbidity in water systems or waste water sources.

In some aspects, the present disclosure pertains to reactive multi-arm polymers having a cage-like silicon-oxygen core and a plurality of polyoxazoline-containing arms extending from the core, in which the polyoxazoline-containing arms comprise a first end that is covalently attached to the cage-like silicon-oxygen core and a second end comprising a moiety that comprises a reactive end group. In other aspects, the present disclosure pertains to systems that comprise such reactive multi-arm polymers and multifunctional compounds that comprise functional groups that are reactive with the reactive end groups of the reactive multi-arm polymers. Other aspects pertain to medical hydrogels formed by crosslinking such reactive multi-arm polymers with such multifunctional compounds and methods of treatment that comprise administering to a subject a mixture that comprises and such reactive multi-arm polymers with such multifunctional compounds.

The invention relates to novel antimicrobial surfactants and their application in antimicrobial coating systems, in particular water borne coatings. Provided is a method for providing an antimicrobial surfactant, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a hyperbranched polyurea having blocked isocyanates at the end of the polymer branches by the polycondensation of AB.sub.2 monomers; (b) introducing tertiary amine groups by reacting said blocked isocyanates of the hyperbranched polyurea with a tertiary amine compound that is functionalized with OH, NH.sub.2, SH, or COO; and (c) quaternization of said tertiary amine groups by reacting with an alkylating agent to obtain a quaternized hyperbranched polymer having antimicrobial surfactant properties.

There is provided a hyper-branched polymer represented by the following formula (1) and having a weight-average molecular weight in a range of 1,000 to 1,000,000. In the formula (1), A.sup.1 is a group containing an aromatic ring, A.sup.2 is a group containing an amide group, A.sup.3 is a group containing sulfur, R.sup.0 is hydrogen or a substituted or unsubstituted hydrocarbon group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms, ml is in a range of 0.5 to 11, and n1 is in a range of 5 to 100.

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