Plant-Based Polymeric Nanomaterials for Biomedical Applications

Abstract

Plant-derived polymeric nanomaterials play an important role as excipients in different biomedical applications ranging from nanomedicine to tissue engineering. These provide versatile biocompatible platforms for controlled drug release with the advantage of being most cost-effective materials. Inorganic nanoparticles have received considerable global interest amongst biomedical researchers, but their toxicity concerns cannot be ignored. In this context, the biomass has been recognized as potential source to obtain different types of functional nanomaterials. These nanomaterials have polysaccharide backbone, which consists of monomer units of carbohydrate and mimic the extracellular matrix of tissues, thus making these biocompatible by nature. Further, the ease of surface functionalization, natural abundance, together with high stability make these ideal biomaterial candidates for next generation health care applications. Here, in this chapter, we have described the biomedical applications of different plant-based nanomaterials, with a major focus towards using these as drug delivery agents, bioprinting materials, wound healing agents, etc.