Smart Designing of Tragacanth Gum by Graft Functionalization for Advanced Materials

Tragacanth gum is a novel polysaccharide which offers interesting features in terms of high hydrophilicity, good biocompatibility, and biodegradability. The engineering of hydrogels requires careful designing of their macromolecular structures so that desirable features may be incorporated into the material. Graft polymerization has come up as an interesting approach to develop molecules for drug delivery, wound care systems, and infection‐resistant materials. The most important aspect of graft functionalization is the proper control over physico‐chemical properties of the grafted matrix. The extent of functionalization may be governed by the grafting parameters and may lead to the chemical designing of the molecule in a controlled manner. This opens up enormous possibilities of developing materials for a wide range of applications as advanced materials.