Design and synthesis of responsive glycopolymers for biomedical and environmental applications

Abstract Glycopolymers are a unique class of synthetic polymers bearing pendant carbohydrate moieties and have emerged as an important class of functional materials owing to their biocompatibility, biodegradability, hydrophilicity, and ability to mimic the functions of natural glycans in biological systems. These inherent properties enable specific carbohydrate‐lectin interactions involving cellular recognition, signalling, and pathogen binding, providing intrinsic biological recognition and biocompatibility. The integration of responsive segments into glycopolymer architectures has led to the evolution of smart materials capable of undergoing reversible physicochemical changes in response to pH, temperature, redox, light, and other bio‐stimuli, thereby dynamically altering their conformation, self‐assembly, and binding affinity. These stimuli‐responsive features of glycopolymers have shown tremendous potential in a wide range of applications, including biomedicine, biosensing, diagnostics, drug delivery systems, water purification, dye removal, and hydrogen production. This review highlights the advances in synthetic methodologies, including controlled radical polymerization technique, surface‐grafting approaches, post‐polymerization modification, and ring‐opening polymerization with precise structural control, which have significantly broadened the scope of glycopolymer synthesis. These advances reinforce the potential of responsive glycopolymers as versatile and sustainable materials for advanced biomedical and environmental applications.