The synthesis of new polymer colloids based on renewable resources, such as sugar-derived monomers, is nowadays a matter of interest. These new polymeric particles should be useful in biomedical applications, such as drug delivery, because of their assumed biodegradability. In this work, two new families of polymer latex particles, based on a sugar-derived monomer, 3-O-methacryloyl-1,2:5,6-di-O-isopropylidene-g-D-glucofuranose (3-MDG), were produced and characterized. The syntheses of poly(3-MDG) crosslinked particles and those obtained by copolymerization with methacrylic acid (MAA), poly(3-MDG-co-MAA) crosslinked particles, were prepared by surfactant-free emulsion polymerization in a batch reactor. The average particle diameter evolutions, the effect of pH of the dispersion medium on the final average diameters, together with the microscopic and morphological analysis of the particle's surface and inner dominium, were analyzed. Poly(3-MDG-co-EGDMA) stable particles were obtained by adding low amounts of initiator. The surface-charge density of these particles corresponded to the sulfate groups coming from the initiator. In the second family of latices, poly(3-MDG-co-MAA-co-EGDMA) particles, DCP measurements and SEM and TEM observations showed that the sizes and surface characteristics depended on the amounts of MAA and crosslinker used in the reaction mixture. (c) 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.