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Summary: Within this work we aimed to study different RAFT agents for the potential use in coupled block copolymerization. Starting from S‐(thiobenzoyl)thioglycolic acid as a commercial available CTA it should easily be possible to modify the substituent due to the thiocarboxylic group. Different chain transfer agents CTA's were synthesized and RAFT polymerizations of methyl methacrylate, butyl acrylate, N,N‐dimethyl acrylamide, N,N‐diethyl acrylamide, and N‐isopropyl acrylamide were carried out and compared with each other.

BACKGROUND: Amphiphilic block and graft copolymers constitute a very interesting class of polymers with potential for biomedical applications, due to their special characteristics, which derive from the combination of properties of hydrophilic and hydrophobic moieties. In this work, the synthesis and biodegradation of poly(2hydroxyethyl methacrylate)-graft-poly(L-lactide) are studied. RESULTS:The graft copolymers were synthesized using the macromonomer technique. In a first step, methacryloyl-terminated poly(L-lactide) macromonomers were synthesized in a wide molecular weight range using different catalysts. Subsequently, these macromonomers were copolymerized with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate in order to obtain a graft copolymer. These new materials resemble hydrogel scaffolds with a biodegradable component. The biodegradation was studied in hydrolytic and enzymatic environments. The influence of different parameters (molecular weight, crystallinity, ratio between hydrophilic and hydrophobic components) on the degradation rate was investigated.CONCLUSION: Based on this study it will be possible to tailor the release properties of biodegradable materials. In addition, the materials will show good biocompatibility due to the hydrophilic poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) hydrogel scaffold. This kind of material has potential for many applications, like controlled drug-delivery systems or biodegradable implants.