Abstract: Core-shell tecto(dendrimers) useful in biomedicine, pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and in other ways analogous to the known uses for dendrimers, hypercomb branched polymers, and other dendritic polymers are the reaction product of a core dendritic polymer molecule having a plurality of terminal functional groups of a first type which are not reactive with each other, and a plurality of shell dendritic polymer molecules having a plurality of terminal functional groups of a second type which are not reactive with each other, but which are reactive with the terminal functional groups of the first type. Each of the shell dendritic polymer molecules is chemically bonded to the core dendritic polymer molecule by a reaction of at least one of the terminal functional groups of the second type with at least one of the terminal functional groups of the first type.

Abstract: Dendritic polymers containing disulfide functional groups which are essentially inert under non-reducing conditions, but which form sulfhydryl groups upon being subjected to a reducing agent are prepared by synthesizing dendritic polymers having a core with a disulfide linkage or by reacting a dendritic polymer with a molecule containing a disulfide linkage and reactive terminal groups. In one aspect of the invention, dendritic polymers having a single disulfide functional group at the core are provided. The single disulfide group at the core can be reduced to form two sulfhydryl groups to which other molecules, such as proteins, oligonucleotides, peptides, hormones, other dendritic polymers, non-dendritic polymers, etc., can be bound.

Abstract: Dendritic polymer conjugates which are composed of at least one dendrimer in association with at least one unit of a carried material, where the carrier material can be a biological response modifier, have been prepared. The conjugate can also have a target director present, and when it is present then the carried material may be a bioactive agent. Preferred dendritic polymers are dense star polymers, which have been complexed with biological response modifiers. These conjugates and complexes have particularly advantageous properties due to their unique characteristics.