Four new monomers, 3-(N-methylacrylamido)propylidenebisphosphonic acid, 3-(N-propyl-acrylamido)propylidenebisphosphonic acid, 3-(N-hexylacrylamido)propylidenebisphosphonic acid, and 3-(N-octylacrylamido)propylidenebisphosphonic acid, have been synthesized in good yields and fully characterized by H-1, C-13, P-31 NMR, and HRMS. The copolymerization of these monomers with N,N'-diethyl-1,3-bis(acrylamido)propane (DEBAAP) has been investigated with differential scanning calorimetry. These mixtures show a higher reactivity than DEBAAP. New self-etch dental primers, based on these acrylamide monomers, have been formulated. Dentin shear bond strength measurements have shown that primers based on these bisphosphonic acids assure a strong bond between the tooth substance and a dental composite. (C) 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem 47: 5258-5271, 2009