Synthesis And Characterizations Of A Biodegradable Block Copolymer Consisting Of Poly(propylene Fumarate) And Poly(e-caprolactone)

摘要

Poly(propylene fumarate) (PPF) can be crosslinked through its fumarate double bonds for diverse orthopaedic applications.~1 Although many efforts have been made to explore the applications of PPF-based materials, there are still many important limitations of this material such as the rigidity of the PPF polymer chain and the need for a crosslinker to form crosslinked PPF networks, which may lead to cytotoxicity. We have previously developed a copolymer polycaprolactone fumarate (PCLF) based on polycaprolactone (PCL) and fumarate segments. Due to the presence of PCL unit, the PCLF chain is much more flexible than the PPF chain. This renders PCLF self-crosslinkable without any crosslinkers. However, the self-crosslinked PCLF network is weak because of the low double bond density. To further improve the mechanical strength and self-crosslinking characteristics, here we report a novel block copolymer P(PF-co-CL) based on PCL and PPF.