Patent ID: 8017733

Claim:
A composition having the structure according to the formula: wherein E is hydrogen, a straight- or branched-chain C 1 to C 20 alkyl group, or a detectable label; a is an integer from 4 to 10,000; each Z and Z′ is independently hydrogen; a straight- or branched-chain, saturated or unsaturated C 1 to C 20 alkyl or heteroalkyl group; C 3 to C 8 saturated or unsaturated cyclic alkyl or cyclic heteroalkyl; a substituted or unsubstituted aryl or heteroaryl group; or a substituted or unsubstituted alkaryl group wherein the alkyl is a C 1 to C 20 saturated or unsaturated alkyl or heteroalkaryl group, wherein in the substituted groups the substitution is selected from the group consisting of halogen, hydroxyl, carbonyl, carboxylate, ester, formyl, acyl, thiocarbonyl, thioester, thioacetate, thioformate, alkoxyl, phosphoryl, phosphonate, phosphinate, amino, amido, amidine, imine, cyano, nitro, azido, sulfhydryl, sulfate, sulfonate, sulfamoyl, sulfonamido, sulfonyl, heterocyclyl, aralkyl, an aromatic moiety, a heteroaromatic moiety, imino, silyl, ether, and alkylthio, provided that at least one Z or Z′ is not hydrogen; R* is a linking moiety formed from the reaction of a moiety selected from the group consisting of aldehyde, aldehyde hydrate, and acetal with B, wherein B is a biologically-active molecule or precursor thereof that comprises interferon-beta-1a (IFN-β-1a); each n is 0 or an integer from 1 to 5; and p is 1, 2, or 3.