Polysaccharide-based Biodegradable Delivery Vector

Advantages of Polysaccharide-based Biodegradable Delivery Vector

Natural polysaccharides are macromolecular polymers widely found in nature, mainly in the form of cellulose and its derivatives, alginate, agarose, chitosan, etc. Due to the advantages of natural availability, non-toxicity, good biocompatibility, low immunogenicity, and degradability, polysaccharides solve key problems such as poor biocompatibility of synthetic materials in vivo and have become ideal candidates for drug delivery and biomedical applications.

The presence of various functional groups such as hydroxyl (-OH), carboxyl (-COOH), or amino (-NH₂) groups on the molecular chain of polysaccharides makes it easy to be chemically modified to suit various biomedical applications. Researchers have prepared structures such as vesicles, micelles, and hydrogels by altering the physical and chemical properties of polysaccharides. These modified polysaccharides hold great promise for drug delivery and gene delivery applications. Moreover, polysaccharides offer great potential for the development of "smart" delivery systems that can release encapsulated drugs at the appropriate time and site of action.

Fig.1 Drug release from the crosslinked polysaccharide by biodegradation. (Pushpamalar, et al., 2016)

Development Services of Polysaccharide-based Biodegradable Delivery Vector at CD BioGlyco

Currently, many types of polysaccharides have been used as carriers for drug delivery in the biomedical field to reduce the side effects of commonly used synthetic polymers. We have obtained derivatives with different functional groups and coupling compounds through the Modification of Biodegradable Polysaccharides, which can facilitate the further synthesis of delivery carriers. For polysaccharide-based biodegradable drug delivery systems, we offer several strategies for the formulation of the drug carriers and the loading of the drug.

• Constructing polysaccharide-drug conjugates
  The abundant motifs on polysaccharides are the main active sites used to construct polysaccharide-based delivery vectors. Our common construction methods include:
  
  • Interaction between amino groups and carboxyl or hydroxyl groups.
  • Etherification of hydroxyl groups with alkylating agents, esterification of hydroxyl groups with acylating agents, oxidation of ortho-second hydroxyl to aldehydes, and oxidation of primary alcohols to carboxyl groups.
  • The formation of ester bonds, amide bonds, and hydrazone bonds.
• Entrapment of drugs in hydrogels and aerogel matrices
  Hydrophilic polysaccharides and their precursors are good candidates for the preparation of chemically stable hydrogels and aerogels for drug delivery. We encapsulate drug molecules in gel matrices through non-covalent interactions such as hydrogen bonds, salt bonds, and hydrophobic interactions to achieve long-term drug release. We also help our clients develop nanoparticle complex systems in aerogel matrices for sustained drug delivery.
• Self-assembling polysaccharide drug-loaded nanoparticles
  
  • Cross-linking between polymeric electrolyte and ion
    Charged polysaccharides can be cross-linked by interacting with oppositely simple ions or charged polymers. We construct hydrogels by ionic cross-linking and adapt them to pH-controlled drug release by modulating swelling and dissolution.
  • Self-assembly of hydrophobic polysaccharides
    We prepare self-assembled structures, such as nanoparticles, "missiles", liposomes, and niosomes, by introducing hydrophobic moieties to the hydrophilic polysaccharide backbones. The amino, hydroxyl, and carboxyl groups on the hydrophilic polysaccharide backbone are common sites for hydrophobic grafting.

With a strong scientific team and technology platform, CD BioGlyco is focused on the Applications of Polysaccharide-based Biodegradable Materials. We help our clients tackle the challenging task of selecting the most suitable delivery materials for drug and target applications through multidisciplinary approaches.

If you have scientific needs to develop the ideal polysaccharide-based delivery vector, please feel free to contact us for more details.