Biodegradable Hydrogels for Drug Delivery

Haesun Park, Kinam Park, Waleed S.W. Shalaby

"The book …presents the first comprehensive reference concerned exclusively with this topic. The book provides an easy access to the subject both for those who are just starting to work in the field and for experience professionals. It affords a broad survey of hydrogel synthesis, degradation, and use for drugdelivery."-Benedikt T. Haag, Department of Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, in Journal of Bioactive and Compatible Polymers"This book is an excellent addition to the literature of controlled delivery of bioactive materials. It is well written, edited, and referenced. I would strongly recommend this book to …those in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries."-Tarun K.Mandal,Assistant Professor of Pharmaceutics, Xavier University of Louisiana, in BioPharm

• Chapters, sub-chapters and selected sub-sections, some condensed for this space. All chapters end with a section of References. Introductiono Controlled Release Drug Delivery Systems o Hydrogels: Definition, Hydrogel as a Biomaterial, Biodegradable Hydrogels Biodegradationo Definitions: Bioresorption, Bioabsorption, Bioerosion, Biodeterioration o Mechanisms: Solubilization, Charge Formation Followed by Dissolution o Chemical Hydrolysis of Polymers:Enzyme-Catalyzed Hydrolysis o Biodegradable Hydrogels Types of Biodegradable Hydrogelso Hydrogels with Degradable Polymer Backbone: Crosslinked Hydrogels, Noncrosslinked Hydrogels o Hydrogels with Degradable Crosslinking Agents: Crosslinked with Small Molecules, Crosslinked with Oligopeptides, Crosslinked with Macromolecules o Hydrogels with Degradable Pendant Chains Chemical Gelso Polymerization in the Presence of Crosslinking Agents: Introduction of Double Bonds to Macromolecules, Determination of Double Bonds on the Macromonomers o Crosslinking of Water-Soluble Polymers: Crosslinking with Functional Groups, Nonspecific Crosslinking, Determination of the Degree of Crosslinking Physical Gelso Thermoreversible Gelling System: Gels with Thermomelting Properties,Gels with Thermogelation Properties o Thermoreversible Gelling Polysaccharides: Water-Soluble Polysaccharides, Gel-Forming Polysaccharides o Physical Gelation by Ion Complexation: Polymers with Hydroxyl Groups, Carrageenan, Gellan, Pectin, Alginate, Polyphosphazenes, Other Polyanions, Chitosan o Physical Gelation by Specific Interactions: Fibrin Gel, Mucus Gel, Actin Gel, Avidin-Biotin Mediated Gel, Antibody Mediated Gel, Lectin-Mediated Gel oDetermination of the Crosslink Density Chemically-Induced Degradationo Chemically-Induced Hydrolysis in the Body: Distribution and Elimination, Factors Influencing Chemically-Induced Hydrolysis o Chemically-Induced Hydrolysis of Polye