Synthetic polymers have been widely utilized in biomedical applications by controlling their physicochemical characteristics and enhancing their biocompatibility. As natural polymers produced by cells generally show undesirable mechanical and physical properties with the risk of potential protein denaturation, synthetic polymers offer a more controllable platform for specific applications in biomedicine with distinctive properties and functionality. With the development of biochemical technology and polymer science, cell-mediated in-situ polymerization including polymerization inside cells and on the surface of cells, instead of direct transferring synthetic polymers to cells, has received much research interest. In this review, we summarize the polymerization methods used for living cell-mediated in-situ polymerization including radical polymerization, step-growth polymerization, and oxidative polymerization. Furthermore, the biological effects induced by these polymers against living cells and animals are also discussed. We hope this review could stimulate more research and collaborations among researchers in the fields of materials science, polymer chemistry, and biology to promote the use of polymer-based theranostics in practical applications and clinical trials.

合成聚合物通过控制其物理化学特性和增强其生物相容性已广泛用于生物医学应用。由于细胞产生的天然聚合物通常表现出不良的机械和物理特性，并具有潜在的蛋白质变性风险，因此合成聚合物为生物医学中的特定应用提供了一个更可控的平台，具有独特的特性和功能。随着生化技术和高分子科学的发展，细胞介导的原位聚合，包括细胞内部和细胞表面的聚合，而不是直接将合成聚合物转移到细胞中，引起了广泛的研究兴趣。在这篇综述中，我们总结了用于活细胞介导的聚合方法原位聚合包括自由基聚合、逐步增长聚合和氧化聚合。此外，还讨论了这些聚合物对活细胞和动物的生物学效应。我们希望这篇综述能够激发材料科学、高分子化学和生物学领域的研究人员之间的更多研究和合作，以促进基于聚合物的治疗诊断学在实际应用和临床试验中的应用。