A Perspective on Polylactic Acid-Based Polymers Use for Nanoparticles Synthesis and Applications

Abstract

Polylactic acid (PLA)—based polymers are ubiquitous in the biomedical field thanks to their combination of attractive peculiarities: biocompatibility (degradation products do not elicit critical responses and are easily metabolized by the body), hydrolytic degradation in situ, tailorable properties, and well-established processing technologies. This led to the development of several applications, such as bone fixation screws, bioresorbable suture threads, and stent coating, just to name a few. Nanomedicine could not be unconcerned by PLA-based materials as well, where their use for the synthesis of nanocarriers for the targeted delivery of hydrophobic drugs emerged as a new promising application. The purpose of the here presented review is two-fold: on one side, it aims at providing a broad overview of PLA-based materials and their properties, which allow them gaining a leading role in the biomedical field; on the other side, it offers a specific focus on their recent use in nanomedicine, highlighting opportunities and perspectives.

Lake Phytoplankton Assemblage Altered by Irregularly Shaped PLA Body Wash Microplastics but Not by PS Calibration Beads

“…The differential effects of the calibration beads (DC) vs. irregularly shaped body wash MP particles (DP) on cryptophytes and chrysophytes were totally unexpected, as they were both "sinking" MPs (i.e., not made of "floating" high-or low-density polyethylene or polypropylene), and their size difference was within one order of magnitude. DP had an extremely close (r = 0.99) match with PLA, a family of plant-based biodegradable plastics widely used in medicine as suture threads, bone fixation hardware, and drug delivery devices and also noted for its brittleness and slow degradation [44]. PLAs derived from corn-based starch are also widely used in biodegradable/compostable single-use clamshell food containers [45] and tableware [46].…”

Three-dimensional, printed water-filtration system for economical, on-site arsenic removal

“…As illustrated in Fig 2B, the fabricated PLA filter was then hydrolyzed using a strong acid. Placing the PLA filter in an acidic environment leads to the dissociation of the ester linkages of PLA [37][38][39][40], yielding hydroxyl and carboxylic groups, as the chemical reaction is shown in Fig 3 [41]. Then, the increased hydrophilicity of the channels facilitates water flow and increases the amount of Fe(OH) 3 deposition.…”

An innovative endotracheal tube clamp for use in COVID-19

“…Although clamping can also be done with regular surgical forceps, as this proposed clamp always remains attached to the ETT, it makes it practical to use and avoids contamination of multiple forceps, thus reducing the likelihood of cross infection. The ETT clamp was designed by a Portuguese operating room nurse (Mário Gomes; 3D printer file available as an online supplement) A and it has been produced using polylactic acid 5 and a 3D printer. This material is derived from a renewable resource (like corn starch or sugar cane) making it a non-toxic, inexpensive, environmentally friendly product.…”