Recent Biomedical Advances with Polyampholyte Polymers

Polyampholyte polymer systems are composed of varying mixtures of charged monomer subunits. These polymeric systems have gained increasing attention because it is possible to design the final material properties through careful selection of the charged monomer subunits and controlling the polymer architecture. Characteristics that have been manipulated include the hydration, mechanical properties, pH responsive swelling, temperature responsive swelling, resistance to nonspecific protein adsorption, and protein conjugation capability. This had led researchers to propose the use of polyampholyte polymers as biosensor platforms, fouling release membranes, drug delivery vehicles, and tissue engineering scaffolds. This review is focused on advances that have been made over the last 5 years to develop polyampholyte polymers for these biomedical applications. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci., 2014, 131, 40069. Copyright © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.