Polycatechols are a class of polymers bearing multiple catechol moieties. These polymers possess unique physiochemical properties such as antioxidant, bioadhesive, metal chelating, and dynamic covalent bonding. As a result, polycatechols have shown great promise in various biomedical applications i.e. drug delivery, gene and protein delivery, free radical scavenging, antimicrobials, bio-adhesions, tissue engineering, and bioimaging. The polymers have strong binding affinities with biomolecules such as genes, proteins, phospholipids, and extracellular matrices via non-covalent interactions, and are proposed as effective carriers for biotherapy and bioadhesives for tissue engineering. The abundant catechol moieties on polycatechols allow strong free radical scavenging to treat oxidative stress and inflammation. In addition, polycatechols form dynamic covalent linkages with boronate ligands, and are used to modulate the quorum-sensing signaling in bacteria, or deliver anticancer drug bortezomib to tumor microenvironments. Besides, polycatechols coordinate with metal ions such as gadolinium (III) to provide contrast reagents for magnetic resonance imaging. In this critical review, currently developed synthetic methods for polycatechols and their physiochemical properties will be introduced. The design principles for polycatechols in detailed biomedical applications will be intensively described. Finally, current challenges and future perspectives in the development of next-generation polycatechols will be discussed.

中文翻译：

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聚儿茶酚：生物医学应用的有前途的材料


聚儿茶酚是一类带有多个儿茶酚部分的聚合物。这些聚合物具有独特的理化性质，如抗氧化剂、生物粘附、金属螯合和动态共价键合。因此，聚儿茶酚在各种生物医学应用中显示出巨大的前景，即药物输送、基因和蛋白质输送、自由基清除、抗菌、生物粘附、组织工程和生物成像。该聚合物通过非共价相互作用与基因、蛋白质、磷脂和细胞外基质等生物分子具有很强的结合亲和力，被提议作为生物治疗和组织工程生物粘合剂的有效载体。聚儿茶酚上丰富的儿茶酚部分可以强烈清除自由基，从而治疗氧化应激和炎症。此外，聚儿茶酚与硼酸配体形成动态共价键，用于调节细菌中的群体感应信号，或将抗癌药物硼替佐米递送至肿瘤微环境。此外，聚儿茶酚与钆（III）等金属离子配位，为磁共振成像提供造影剂。在这篇批判性评论中，将介绍目前开发的聚儿茶酚的合成方法及其理化性质。将深入描述聚儿茶酚在详细生物医学应用中的设计原理。最后，将讨论下一代聚儿茶酚开发的当前挑战和未来前景。