Polymers and Sulfur: what are Organic Polysulfides Good For? Preparative Strategies and Biological Applications

Abstract

Sulfur(II)-containing polymers (polysulfides) combine flexible synthetic and processing techniques with a unique responsiveness to oxidants. Here, the polysulfide oxidative sensitivity is put into the biological context of the development of new anti-inflammatory therapies - the development of new anti-inflammatory methodologies, adopted interactions and the minimisation of foreign-body reactions - through the review of 50 years of research on polysulfide synthetic methodologies. Attention is paid to the identification of the most flexible and robust preparative techniques.

Oxidation-Responsive and “Clickable” Poly(ethylene glycol) via Copolymerization of 2-(Methylthio)ethyl Glycidyl Ether

“…2 oxide results in a random microstructure (r EO = 0.92 ± 0.02 and r MTEG E = 1.06 ± 0.02), which was confirmed by in-situ 1 H NMR kinetic studies. The random copolymers are thermoresponsive in aqueous solution, with a wide range of tunable transition temperatures of 88 °C to 28 °C.…”

“…ρ (23 °C) = 1.10 g·mL -1 . 1 Purification was performed via repeated fractionated distillation under reduced pressure, lowering the overall yield to 50-60 %. However, unreacted reagents can be recollected.…”

The synthesis of polymeric sulfides by reaction of dihaloalkanes with sodium sulfide

“…The filtrates were combined and the solvent was removed under reduced pressure to give tetrahydrothiophene (11) in 75-78% yield. 1 …”

“…Also, it was produced in 87% yield by oxidation of 1,6hexanedithiol with bromine according to the literature procedure (22). 1 …”

“…Poly(alkylene sulfide)s are important polymers and their applications have been reviewed recently (1). They possess excellent thermal stability, weatherability, solvent resistance and oil resistance (2)(3)(4) and hence are widely used in coatings, adhesives, sealants, insulators and other applications (5)(6)(7)(8).…”