Hydrolytically Degradable Thiol-ene Hydrogels for Protein Release

Hydrolytically degradable hyaluronic acid hydrogels with controlled temporal structures.

Polysaccharides are being processed into biomaterials for numerous biological applications due to their native source in numerous tissues and biological functions. For instance, hyaluronic acid (HA) is found abundantly in the body, interacts with cells through surface receptors, and can regulate cellular behavior (e.g., proliferation, migration). HA was previously modified with reactive groups ...

Dually degradable click hydrogels for controlled degradation and protein release.

Synthesis of (Bio)degradable Polymers via Thiol-ene Click Polymerization

Towards the development of (bio)degradable polymers with medical relevance a non-radical thiolene synthesis route is investigated. In this work, step growth polymerization based on Michael addition click reactions is presented. Homotelechelic RAFT polymers were conjugated leading to polymers with molar weight distribution typical for a step growth polymerization, tailing up to 100 000 g∙mol-1 i...

Modular Degradable Hydrogels Based on Thiol-Reactive Oxanorbornadiene Linkers

Oxanorbornadiene dicarboxylate (OND) reagents are potent Michael acceptors, the adducts of which undergo fragmentation by retro-Diels-Alder reaction at rates that vary with the substitution pattern on the OND moiety. Rapid conjugate addition between thiol-terminated tetravalent PEG and multivalent ONDs yielded self-supporting hydrogels within 1 min at physiological temperature and pH. Erosion o...

Mechanical characterization of sequentially layered photo-clickable thiol-ene hydrogels.

Multi-layer hydrogels are promising for tissue engineering due to the ability to control the local properties within each layer. However, the interface that forms between each layer has the potential to affect the performance of the hydrogel. The goals of this study were to characterize how the interface forms via its thickness and mechanical properties, identify its impact on the overall hydro...