As analogues of natural polysaccharides, glycoproteins, and glycopeptides, synthetic glycopolymers are an emerging family of natural resource-based macromolecules with good biocompatibility and biomimicking features, which made them attractive “green” functional polymers over the past few years. Many functional glycopolymers have been synthesized and self-assembled into micro/nanoaggregates with various morphologies (including micelles, vesicles, rods, fibers, and spindles), which have shown great potential in biomolecular recognition, drug/gene delivery, cell adhesion, and targeting, as well as cell culture and tissue engineering applications. Nowadays, the study of the biomedical applications of synthesized glycopeptides is an important research frontier in the cross-section of chemistry, biomaterial, and biomedical sciences. In this area, there are still a lot of unknown challenges to be explored.

This special issue aims to demonstrate the state-of-the-art of the design, synthesis, characterization, and biomedical applications of synthesized glycopolymers and their assemblies, discussing the future perspective/outlook of the related research field. We welcome original research and review articles in the field of synthesized glycopolymers and anticipate that these contributions will enrich the knowledge of glycopolymer assembly, provide a world level platform for the glycopolymer researchers, and promote the future application of glycopolymer-based systems as advanced functional biomaterials.

Potential topics include but are not limited to the following:

• Synthesis/modification (e.g., “click” chemistry, bioorthogonal reaction, photo-(visible light-) induced reaction, and enzyme-assisted reaction) and characterization methods of glycopolymers
• Structural and functional biomimicking (especially “smart” or programmable) glycopolymers
• Self- (forced) assembly preparation of glycopolymer-based functional micro/nanoaggregates
• Structure-function relationships of glycopolymers
• Biomedical applications of synthesized glycopolymers and their micro/nanoassemblies in the following areas:
  • Glycopolymer-based controlled delivery of drug/gene, bioactive molecules, agrochemicals, etc.
  • Glycopolymer-based biomolecular (protein/enzyme/nucleic acids, and small biomolecules) recognition and separation
  • Glycopolymer-based biocatalysis and biotransformation
  • Glycopolymer-based cell culture, biofunctional coating, bio-3D-printing, and tissue engineering, as well as biosensors and bioelectronic devices