**Stereocomplex Polylactide for Drug Delivery and Biomedical Applications: A Review**

**Seung Hyuk Im 1,2,†, Dam Hyeok Im 3,†, Su Jeong Park 1,4, Justin Jihong Chung 4, Youngmee Jung 4,5 and Soo Hyun Kim 1,4,6,\***

> 1 NBIT, KU-KIST Graduate School of Converging Science and Technology, Korea University, 145 Anam-ro, Seongbuk-gu,Seoul02841,Korea;ishidh@korea.ac.kr(S.H.I.);airplane96@kist.re.kr (S.J.P.)


† These authors contributed equally to this work.

**Abstract:** Polylactide (PLA) is among the most common biodegradable polymers, with applications in various fields, such as renewable and biomedical industries. PLA features poly(D-lactic acid) (PDLA) and poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) enantiomers, which form stereocomplex crystals through racemic blending. PLA emerged as a promising material owing to its sustainable, eco-friendly, and fully biodegradable properties. Nevertheless, PLA still has a low applicability for drug delivery as a carrier and scaffold. Stereocomplex PLA (sc-PLA) exhibits substantially improved mechanical and physical strength compared to the homopolymer, overcoming these limitations. Recently, numerous studies have reported the use of sc-PLA as a drug carrier through encapsulation of various drugs, proteins, and secondary molecules by various processes including micelle formation, self-assembly, emulsion, and inkjet printing. However, concerns such as low loading capacity, weak stability of hydrophilic contents, and non-sustainable release behavior remain. This review focuses on various strategies to overcome the current challenges of sc-PLA in drug delivery systems and biomedical applications in three critical fields, namely anti-cancer therapy, tissue engineering, and anti-microbial activity. Furthermore, the excellent potential of sc-PLA as a next-generation polymeric material is discussed.

**Keywords:** polylactide; stereocomplex; biodegradable polymers; drug delivery system; biomedical applications
