Scientist Proposed Cooperative Catalytic Strategy for Synthetic Biomedical Polyester Materials
Biomedical materials traditionally defined as materials used in medical devices. They are often used to diagnose, treat, repair or replace damaged tissues, organs or enhance their functions. Aliphatic polyester materials are an important class of synthetic biomedical polymer, which has good biocompatibility and biodegradability.
The most widely used polyester materials include polylactide (PLA), polyglycolide (PGA) and polycaprolactone (ε-PCL). The research on efficient controlled polymerization of these materials is an urgent scientific problem.
Recently, a research team led by Prof. WANG Qinggang from the Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology (QIBEBT), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), developed a novel organocatalytic ring-opening polymerization (ROP) of lactones (fig.1).
The cooperative combination of N-Heterocyclic olefins (NHOs) and thioureas (TUs) serve as a highly efficient catalyst for the synthesis of PLA, poly (δ-valerolactone) (PVLs) and ε-PCL, delivering polymers in high yields and selectivities (fig.2). The 1H NMR and MALDI-TOF MS measurements of the resultant polymers clearly indicated the linear polymer chain capped with BnO, indicating that the NHO/TU cocatalyzed ROP of lactones proceeded through a bifunctional mechanism.
This strategy enables to produce polyesters with controlled molecular weight, low polydispersity distribution and well-defined end group. Furthermore, this work discloses a new application of N-Heterocyclic olefin in combination with thiourea cocatalyst and enriches the toolbox for synthesis of biomedical polyesters.
Fig.2 Aliphatic polyester materials (Image by XU Guangqiang and ZHOU Li)
These results were published in Polymer Chemistry, and generous supported by the the National Key R&D Plan, Young Taishan Scholars Program of Shandong Province, “135” Projects Fund of CAS-QIBEBT Director Innovation Foundation.
( Text by XU Guangqiang and ZHOU Li )
Contact :
CHENG Jing
Qingdao Institute of Bioenergy and Bioprocess Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Tel: 86-532-80662647
E-mail: chengjing@qibebt.ac.cn
