Microbial exo-polysaccharides for biomedical applications.

The productions and applications of various microbial exopolysaccharides have been under intensive researches over the past few decades. Some of these exopolysaccharides are commercial available and some are currently under intensive development; they include ionic heteropolysaccharide and neutral homopolysaccharide. These extracellular polymers constitute a structurally diverse class of biological macromolecules with a wide range of physiochemical properties which are the basis for the different applications in the broad fields of pharmacy and medicine. They have found applications in such diverse biomedical fields as ophthalmology, orthopedic surgery, tissue engineering, implantation of medical devices and artificial organs, prostheses, dentistry, bone repair and drug delivery.