Abstract:
A new copolymer synthesized from a glycosaminoglycan (GAG) such as hyaluronan/ hyaluronic acid (HA), chondroitin sulfates, derma tan sulfates, keratan sulfates, heparan sulfate, and heparin, and an anhydride functionalized hydrophobic polymer, i.e., any polyolefin which has been 'functionalized' (grafted onto the backbone or incorporated into the backbone) with anhydride functional groups, such as maleic anhydride-graft-polyethylene, (or, maleated polyethylene), maleic anhydride-graft-polystyrene, maleic anhydride-graft-polypropylene, etc. The functionalized polyolefin may be a polyolefin backbone to which the anhydride functional groups have been grafted, or otherwise incorporated with the backbone. Also, a unique synthesis technique combines a modified GAG with a graft polyolefin, resulting in a unique copolymer with its constituents by-and-large covalently bound to each other.
Abstract:
An outer layer material having an entanglement comprising an intermingling of cloaked hydrophilic guest and a hydrophobic polymer host, wherein molecules of the guest have been crosslinked with each other. Under certain circumstances, using complexes of the guest may be desirable or even necessary. Prior to intermingling with the guest, a host blend may be produced to include a physical blend of a hydrophobic polymer host and a maleated hydrophobic co-host (preferably, an anhydride functionalized hydrophobic polymer, whereby the polymer so functionalized, is the same as that selected for the host). The intermingling of the guest and host, or host-co-host blend, includes a physical tangling, whether it also comprises crosslinking by primary bonding (e.g., chemical/covalent bonding) there-between. Also a method of producing an outer layer material having such an entanglement, including the steps of: temporarily cloaking at least a portion of the hydrophilic groups of the guest; intermingling at least a portion of the cloaked groups with a porous polymeric structure by diffusing the guest with cloaked groups into at least a portion of the structure's pores; within the pores, crosslinking at least a portion of the molecules of the guest with the guest; and removing the cloaking. Cloaking may be performed by silylation or acylation. Intermingling may be performed by producing a mixture of guest and host, or host blend, (whether in solution, powdered, granular, etc., form); next, a crosslinking of the guest with itself is performed; then, the mixture is molded into the outer layer with or without additional crosslinking of the host to the host.