Carbohydrate Therapeutics Based on Polymer-Grafted Glyconanoparticles: Synthetic Methods and Applications

Abstract

Polysaccharides are natural biological molecules with various properties including biodegradation and low toxicity which are advantageous features for the therapeutics development. Chemical modification of polysaccharides can be an effective tool to develop nanoparticle-enabled conjugates, therapeutics, photosensitizers, imaging agents, and sensors. Glyconanoparticles are nanoparticles which are surface-decorated with polymer chains consisting of carbohydrates. These particles play a vital role in the development of personalized medicines to meet various clinically unmet needs of the patients. In recent times, these particles are also found to be useful in drug delivery and imaging. This chapter mainly focuses on the controlled synthesis of nanoparticles based on polysaccharides by various living polymerization techniques. The living polymerization of polysaccharides is essential for preparing the multivalent glycoclusters and to conjugate various biologically important molecules, which helps in the development of polysaccharide-based therapeutic nanomedicine. In this chapter, we also highlight the recent literature based on polysaccharide nanoparticulate systems and our own work, and their potential uses in the biomedical areas.