The Polymer Society of Korea

Abstract

Injectable thermogelling polymers are promising biomaterials for minimally invasive biomedical applications. Although glycol chitosan–based thermogels offer excellent biocompatibility and functionality, their biodegradation is largely enzyme-dependent, limiting controllability. Herein, we report a hydrolytically degradable glycol chitosan thermogel incorporating ester-based cleavage linkers. Hydrophobic hexyl groups were conjugated to glycol chitosan to form hexyl-substituted glycol chitosan (HS-GC), enabling temperature-responsive sol–gel transition and controlled hydrolytic degradation independent of enzymatic activity. The structure of HS-GC was confirmed by ¹H NMR and FT-IR analyses. The thermogels exhibited tunable thermosensitivity, favorable injectability, and predictable degradation behavior, demonstrating their potential as a controllable platform for localized drug delivery.