Open Access

REVIEW

Renewable Polymers in Biomedical Applications: From the Bench to the Market

by Rauany Cristina Lopes¹, Tamires Nossa², Wilton Rogério Lustri¹, Gabriel Lombardo^3,4,5, Maria Inés Errea^3,4, Eliane Trovatti^1,*

1 Department of Health and Biological Sciences, University of Araraquara—UNIARA, Araraquara, 14801-340, Brazil
2 Laboratory of Materials (LabMat) and Laboratory of Biopolymers (LaBioPol), Federal Institute of Education, Science and Technology of São Paulo Campus Itapetininga (IFSP), Itapetininga, 18.202‑000, Brazil
3 Instituto Tecnológico de Buenos Aires, Cidade Autônoma de Buenos Aires, C1437FBC, Argentina
4 Conselho Nacional de Pesquisas Científicas e Técnicas (CONICET), Cidade Autônoma de Buenos Aires, C1425FQB, Argentina
5 Tecnologia YPF (Y-TEC), Berisso, Buenos Aires, 1923, Argentina

* Corresponding Author: Eliane Trovatti. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Special Issue in Celebration of JRM 10 Years)

Journal of Renewable Materials 2024, 12(4), 643-666. https://doi.org/10.32604/jrm.2024.048957

Received 22 December 2023; Accepted 30 January 2024; Issue published 12 June 2024

Abstract

Polymers from renewable resources have been used for a long time in biomedical applications and found an irreplaceable role in some of them. Their uses have been increasing because of their attractive properties, contributing to the improvement of life quality, mainly in drug release systems and in regenerative medicine. Formulations using natural polymer, nano and microscale particles preparation, composites, blends and chemical modification strategies have been used to improve their properties for clinical application. Although many studies have been carried out with these natural polymers, the way to reach the market is long and only very few of them become commercially available. Vegetable cellulose, bacterial cellulose, chitosan, poly(lactic acid) and starch can be found among the most studied polymers for biological applications, some with several derivatives already established in the market, and others with potential for such. In this scenario this work aims to describe the properties and potential of these renewable polymers for biomedical applications, the routes from the bench to the market, and the perspectives for future developments.

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