About this Book

Biodegradable polymers are an important class of polymers due to their good biodegradability and biocompatibility. The research and application of biodegradable polymers in biomedical fields have attracted extensive attention, especially in that of drug delivery, tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.

Biodegradable polymers can be broken down in vivo through enzymatic and non-enzymatic degradation. For biomedical applications, the chemical and mechanical properties, degradation mechanism and products, and other factors of the polymers play a critical role in their degradation behaviors and application. Thus, many essential issues must be considered in the design of biodegradable polymers for biomedical application. For instance, sufficient mechanical strength is important for scaffold materials to provide three-dimensional space for cells, and its degradation rate must be compatible with tissue regeneration. When used as the drug carriers for some implants, controllable degradation rate is also required for the biodegradable polymers to avoid explosive release, besides good permeability. More importantly, the biodegradable polymers must have good biocompatibility to avoid adverse reactions such as inflammation in the body, and the degradation products must be non-toxic and should not be accumulated in the body. To meet such requirements, the chemical and physical as well as the degradation properties of polymers must be properly tailored.