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Algal biomass is an excellent renewable resource for the production of polymers and other products due to their higher growth rate, high photosynthetic efficiency, great potential for carbon dioxide fixation, low percentage of lignin and high amount of carbohydrates. Algae contain unique metabolites which are transformed into monomers suitable for development of novel polyesters. This review article mainly focuses on algal bio-refinery concept for polyester synthesis and on exploitation of algae-based biodegradable polyester blends and composites in tissue engineering and controlled drug delivery system. Algae-derived hybrid polyester scaffolds are extensively used for bone, cartilage, cardiac and nerve tissue regeneration due to their biocompatibility and tunable biodegradability. Microcapsules and microspheres of algae-derived polyesters have been used for controlled and continuous release of several pharmaceutical agents and macromolecules to produce humoral and cellular immunity with efficient intracellular delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bio-based polyurethane (PU) coatings have been used extensively from last few decades and replaced petrochemical based coating due to their lower environmental impact, easy availability, low cost and biodegradability. Bio-derived material, such as vegetable oils, cashew nut shell liquid (CNSL), terpene, Eucalyptus tar and other bio-renewable sources, constitute a rich source of precursors for the synthesis of polyols and isocynates which are being considered for the production of “greener” PU coatings. Various chemical modifications of bio-based precursors, synthesis of various PU coatings from these modified materials and their potential applications are discussed in this review. The review examines the technological and future challenges discussed in bringing these materials to a wide range of applications, together with potential solutions, as well as discusses the major industry players who are bringing these materials to the market. This paper will focus on the progress and future opportunities of bio-based materials for coatings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A significantly growing interest is to design a new strategy for development of bio-polyesters from renewable resources due to limited fossil fuel reserves, rise of petrochemicals price and emission of green house gasses. Therefore, this review aims to present an overview on synthesis of biocompatible, biodegradable and cost effective polyesters from biomass and their prospective in different fields including packaging, coating, tissue engineering, drug delivery system and many more. Isosorbide, 2,4:3,5-di-O-methylene- d -mannitol, bicyclic diacetalyzed galactaric acid, 2,5-furandicarboxylic acid, citric, 2,3-O-methylene l -threitol, dimethyl 2,3-O-methylene l -threarate, betulin, dihydrocarvone, decalactone, pimaric acid, ricinoleic acid and sebacic acid, are some important monomers derived from biomass which are used for bio-based polyester manufacturing, consequently, replacing the petrochemical based polyesters. The last part of this review highlights some recent advances in polyester blends and composites in order to improve their properties for exceptional biomedical applications i.e. skin tissue engineering, guided bone regeneration, bone healing process, wound healing and wound acceleration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent advancements in material science and technology made it obvious that use of renewable feed stock is the need of hour. Polymer industry steadily moved to get rid of its dependence on non-renewable resources. Starch, the second largest occurring biomass (renewable) on this planet provides a cheap and eco-friendly way to form huge variety of materials on blending with other biodegradable polymers. Specific structural versatility design for individual application and tailor-made properties have established the polyurethane (PU) as an important and popular class of synthetic biodegradable polymers. Blending of starch with polyurethane is relatively a developing area in PU chemistry but with lot of attraction for researchers. Herein, various starch based polyurethane materials including blends, grafts, copolymers, composites and nano-composites, as well as the prospects and latest developments are discussed. Additionally, an overview of starch based polymeric materials, including their potential applications are presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gellan gum (GG), a linear negatively charged exopolysaccharide,is biodegradable and non-toxic in nature. It produces hard and translucent gel in the presence of metallic ions which is stable at low pH. However, GG has poor mechanical strength, poor stability in physiological conditions, high gelling temperature and small temperature window.Therefore,it is blended with different polymers such as agar, chitosan, cellulose, sodium alginate, starch, pectin, polyanaline, pullulan, polyvinyl chloride, and xanthan gum. In this article, a comprehensive overview of combination of GG with natural and synthetic polymers/compounds and their applications in biomedical field involving drug delivery system, insulin delivery, wound healing and gene therapy, is presented. It also describes the utilization of GG based materials in food and petroleum industry. All the technical scientific issues have been addressed; highlighting the recent advancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glycoproteins have multidimensional properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, non-toxicity, antimicrobial and adsorption properties; therefore, they have wide range of applications. They are blended with different polymers such as chitosan, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), polycaprolactone (PCL), heparin, polystyrene fluorescent nanoparticles (PS-NPs) and carboxyl pullulan (PC) to improve their properties like thermal stability, mechanical properties, resistance to pH, chemical stability and toughness. Considering the versatile charateristics of glycoprotein based polymers, this review sheds light on synthesis and characterization of blends and composites of glycoproteins, with natural and synthetic polymers and their potential applications in biomedical field such as drug delivery system, insulin delivery, antimicrobial wound dressing uses, targeting of cancer cells, development of anticancer vaccines, development of new biopolymers, glycoproteome research, food product and detection of dengue glycoproteins. All the technical scientific issues have been addressed; highlighting the recent advancement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Carrageenan is a natural polysaccharide extracted from edible red seaweeds of Rhodophycea class. It has been used as a viscosity increasing or gelling agent for prolonged and controlled drug release, food, pharmaceuticals and other industries. However, in spite of wide range of applications, carrageenan has some drawbacks and adverse effects on the biological systems, so its modifications with natural and synthetic polymers are carried out. This review article presents different sources and properties of carrageenans with special emphasis on natural polymer based carrageenan blends and composites and their applications in controlled drug delivery system, wound dressing and tissue engineering because of their biodegradability and biocompatibility, food industry as thickening/gelling materials, cosmeceuticals and making polyelectrolyte complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lipids are the main source of energy and widely used for various applications. In this review, the modification of lipids by using them in combination with other biomaterials like natural and synthetic polymers is elaborated. These new blends have characteristic features of both polymers and are characterized by different techniques (NMR, DSC, TGA, IR and Raman spectroscopy etc.) to understand their structure, properties and functional behavior. Lipids are hydrophobic, have anti-oxidant and anti-bacterial properties and thus impart hydrophobicity and flexibility to the polymers. While the polymers, on the other hand, make the lipids tougher. Properties of few polymers such as starch, polyethylene protein and chitosan that have brittleness, low combustion rate and hydrophobicity, are improved by incorporation of lipids ultimately increased their flexibility, combustion rate and hydrophobicity respectively. This review article is also focused on emerging fields for the applications of these composite materials. The most notable application of composite materials are in the field of paint industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]