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Self‐Healing Zwitterionic Microgels as a Versatile Platform for Malleable Cell Constructs and Injectable Therapies
Author(s) -
Sinclair Andrew,
O'Kelly Mary Beth,
Bai Tao,
Hung HsiangChieh,
Jain Priyesh,
Jiang Shaoyi
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
advanced materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 10.707
H-Index - 527
eISSN - 1521-4095
pISSN - 0935-9648
DOI - 10.1002/adma.201803087
Subject(s) - materials science , self healing hydrogels , biocompatibility , 3d cell culture , nanotechnology , scaffold , biocompatible material , self healing , supramolecular chemistry , cell encapsulation , suspension (topology) , biomedical engineering , cell , polymer chemistry , molecule , chemistry , medicine , biochemistry , alternative medicine , mathematics , organic chemistry , pathology , homotopy , pure mathematics , metallurgy
Abstract Injectable and malleable hydrogels that combine excellent biocompatibility, physiological stability, and ease of use are highly desirable for biomedical applications. Here, a simple and scalable strategy is reported to make injectable and malleable zwitterionic polycarboxybetaine hydrogels, which are superhydrophilic, nonimmunogenic, and completely devoid of nonspecific interactions. When zwitterionic microgels are reconstructed, the combination of covalent crosslinking inside each microgel and supramolecular interactions between them gives the resulting zwitterionic injectable pellet (ZIP) constructs supportive moduli and tunable viscoelasticity. ZIP constructs can be lyophilized to a sterile powder that fully recovers its strength and elasticity upon rehydration, simplifying storage and formulation. The lyophilized powder can be reconstituted with any aqueous suspension of cells or therapeutics, and rapidly and spontaneously self‐heals into a homogeneous composite construct. This versatile and highly biocompatible platform material shows great promise for many applications, including as an injectable cell culture scaffold that promotes multipotent stem cell expansion and provides oxidative stress protection.