Poly(N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide mono/di lactate): a new class of biodegradable polymers with tuneable thermosensitivity.

A novel class of thermosensitive and biodegradable polymers, poly(N-(2-hydroxypropyl) methacrylamide mono/di lactate) (poly(HPMAm-mono/di lactate)), was synthesized. The cloud points (CP) of poly(HPMAm-monolactate) and poly(HPMAm-dilactate) in water were 65 and 13 degrees C, respectively. The lower CP for poly(HPMAm-dilactate) is likely due the greater hydrophobicity of the dilactate side group over the monolactate side group. The CP of poly(HPMAm-monolactate-co-HPMAm-dilactate) increased linearly with mol % of HPMA-monolactate, which demonstrates that the CP is tuneable by the copolymer composition.