Modified acrylic block copolymers for hydrogels and pressure sensitive wet adhesives

1. A method of creating a bioadhesive in a substantially aqueous environment comprising the steps:

placing an anionicially polymerized block copolymer containing an amide in a solvent to allow the solvent to swell the block copolymer, wherein the polymerized block copolymer containing the amide is prepared by reacting a difunctional anionic initiator with a sterically hindered ester of methacrylic acid (SEMA);

reacting the anionically polymerized hindered ester of methacrylic acid with methacrylic acid (MMA);

hydrolyzing the anionically polymerized block copolymer with an aqueous solution to afford a methyl methacrylate-methacrylic acid-methyl methacrylate block copolymer (MMA-MAA-MMA);

reacting the MMA-MAA-MMA block copolymer with 3,4-dihydroxyphenyl alanine to afford an amide with the MAA portion of the block copolymer; and

placing the solvent swollen block copolymer in water, wherein the water is exchanged with the solvent to provide a bioadhesive in an aqueous environment.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the sterically hindered ester of methacrylic acid is t-butyl methacrylate (tBMA).

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the difunctional anionic initiator is an anion product of two diphenylethylene molecules.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the solvent is methanol, ethanol, dimethylformaide, dimethylsulfoxide, or N-methyl pyrrolidone.