Phosphorus dendritic architectures: polyanionic and polycationic derivatives

The synthesis of phosphorus dendrimers having charges in their structure, either in the interior or as end‐groups, is briefly reviewed. The emphasis is then put on the properties and applications of these compounds in the fields of materials science and biology. In the first case, polyionic dendrimers have been used to elaborate new mesoscopically ordered hybrid materials, nanoporous materials, hydrogels, fibres, nanotubes, microcapsules and vesicles. In the second case, the low cytotoxicity measured for the positively charged dendrimers has indicated their potential as transfection agents, and as anti‐prion agents.