| 초록 |
Past few years, several thermogelling materials have been developed for biomedical applications. Thermogelling materials have sol-to-gel phase transition at a specific temperature. Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and poly(propylene glycol) (PPG) block copolymers are the thermogelling materials that we used commercially. However, because of the ordered crystalline structure of hydrophobic PEG and PPG, they exhibit short persistence times in the gel phase. To enhance gel-persistence times, we prepared a methoxy poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(ε-caprolactone) diblock copolymer (MPC) and MPC featuring a zwitterionic sulfobetaine (MPC-ZW). The sol-to-gel phase transition temperature was determined to the length of the MPC hydrophobic segments introduced and on the zwitterionic end groups attached to the MPC chain end. The zwitterionic end groups reduced the hydrophobicity around the MPC and thus changed the solubilization and onset temperature of gelation of the copolymers. |
