Biopolymers are nothing more than a few macromolecules that are present in living beings, many of these being synthesized by the year being, thanks to different medical disciplines, such as tissue engineering, achieving compatibility with human beings.. In other words, they are petroleum extracts that when synthesized with some other synthetic growth product and being in contact with human tissue can cause various reactions that are dangerous for the individual.
There are three fundamental families of biopolymers and they are: proteins, which are comprised of fibroins and globulins, there are also polysaccharides where cellulose alginates are and finally nucleic acids, that is, DNA and RNA. There are others such as polyterpenes, which include natural rubber, polyphenols or some polyesters such as polyhydroxyalkanoates produced by some bacteria.
On the other hand, the most common natural biopolymers are polymers synthesized by living beings, among which are:
- Nucleic acids: they are considered the most important biopolymers, since these are carriers of genetic information inherited from generation to generation.
- Proteins: they are formed by peptide bonds between amino acids and they fulfill an important function in the alive beings, since they participate in several biological functions. Being one of them, collagen, antibodies, enzymes, among others.
- Polysaccharides: these are the result of the condensation of simple monosaccharides, these having certain structural functions such as cellulose, pectins, alginates, among others.
- Polyterpenes: this is composed of two well-known polyisoprene such as natural rubber, that is, polyisoprene and gutta-percha.
Just as there are natural biopolymers, there are also synthetic ones, which have much simpler and randomly organized structures. This leads to a molecular mass distribution that is not seen in biopolymers. Since their synthesis is controlled by a directed process in most systems, all biopolymers of one type are all the same. Furthermore, they contain similar sequences and the number of monomers and therefore all have the same mass in their structure. This is called monodispersity in contrast to the polydispersity found in synthetic polymers. As a result, the biopolymers have a polydispersity index of 1.5.
