Polymers

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Dear Colleagues,

Following the success of the Special Issue “Functionalization and Medical Application of Polymer Materials”, a second edition of this Special Issue is being organized. The functionalization of polymers consists of attaching functional groups to their monomeric units. The modified macromolecule bears several functional groups that work in conjunction. The functionalities, linked to the same molecule, amplify their activities through enhanced cooperativity. Polymers are easy to functionalize with a large variety of chemical groups via the utilization of organic chemistry reactions. We can functionalize the preformed polymeric chain or the monomers whose polymerization constitutes the second step of the synthesis. Different requirements induce different functionalizations. Enhancing water solubility, altering the conformation in solution, facilitating the coordination capability toward ionic or neutral molecules, and inducing optical properties such as light absorption or fluorescence can serve the polymer applications. We can utilize functionalized polymers in different medical fields, e.g., drug delivery, tissue engineering, theranostic medicine, and bioimaging. Polymer functionalization for medical applications is a research field that mainly involves organic chemists interested in the synthesis of novel biomaterials for challenging targets.

Dr. Carmine Coluccini
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Related Special Issue

Published Papers (1 paper)

Research

14 pages, 4460 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Polyethylene Glycol-Modified Cationic Liposome as a Promising Nano Spray for Acute Pneumonia Treatment

by Kai Wang, Dagui Chen, Chenxi Zhang, Lu Lu, Fusheng Shang and Yinghua Li

Polymers 2024, 16(10), 1384; https://doi.org/10.3390/polym16101384 - 12 May 2024

Viewed by 753

Abstract

Acute pneumonia (AP), triggered primarily by pathogens like bacteria and viruses, is a leading cause of human mortality. Ribavirin, a broad-spectrum antiviral agent, plays a pivotal role in the treatment of AP. However, its therapeutic use is hindered by the need for high dosages and the associated cardiac and hepatic toxicities. In this study, we synthesized polyethylene glycol-modified cationic liposomes to encapsulate ribavirin (RBV-PCL) and formulated it into a spray, aiming to enhance the effectiveness of RBV through respiratory administration. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a compound known to induce AP models in animals, was utilized in our research. Successfully, we established an acute pneumonia model in mice using aerosol inhalation. Through animal experiments, we investigated the therapeutic effects of RBV-PCL on mice with AP. In vivo studies revealed promising results. RBV-PCL effectively prolonged the survival of mice with AP, significantly reduced the levels of inflammatory markers such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and inhibited the infiltration of neutrophils in the lungs and spleens of mice. These findings suggest that RBV-PCL can effectively suppress the inflammatory response in mice with AP, thus holding significant potential as a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of acute pneumonia. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Functionalization and Medical Application of Polymer Materials: 2nd Edition)

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