Oxidation-responsive Polymers for Biomedical Applications

Reactive oxygen species (ROS) play key roles in many physiological processes, such as cell signaling and host innate immunity. However, when they are overproduced, ROS may damage biomolecules in vivo and cause diseases such as cardiovascular or neurodegenerative diseases, cancer, and so forth. Oxidative stress is usually implicated in various inflammatory tissues, representing an important target for the development of various therapeutic strategies. Therefore, various probes for the in vitro detection of ROS or the in vivo diagnosis of the oxidative stress-relevant diseases have been developed. Oxidation-responsive polymers have also attracted great interest due to their potential applications in biomedical fields. In this feature article, we summarize six types of oxidation-responsive polymers based on different oxidation-responsive motifs. Poly(propylene sulfide)s, selenium-based polymers, aryl oxalate- and phenylboronic ester-containing polymers are discussed in detail, while poly(thioketal)s and proline-containing polymeric scaffolds are briefly introduced.