Dextran-maleic acid monoesters and hydrogels based thereon

Abstract

Biodegradable hydrogels are formed by photocrosslinking dextran-maleic acid monoesters in which the average degree of substitution of each glucose unit of each α-D-glucopyranosyl of dextran by maleic acid ranges from 0.60 to 1.6 and which have a weight average molecular weight ranging from 40,000 to 80,000 on a dextran basis. The hydrogels at pH 7 have maximum swelling ratios ranging from 500 to 1,500 percent. The hydrogels are characterized by increase in swelling ratio as average degree of substitution increases. The hydrogels are useful, for example, for drug delivery and solubility enhancers of drugs, as protective encapsulators of viruses used in gene therapy, and for conventional uses of hydrogels.

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