Premium
In situ apatite forming injectable hydrogel
Author(s) -
Ho Emily,
Lowman Anthony,
Marcolongo Michele
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of biomedical materials research part a
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1552-4965
pISSN - 1549-3296
DOI - 10.1002/jbm.a.31457
Subject(s) - materials science , lower critical solution temperature , silanol , apatite , simulated body fluid , polymer , dissolution , chemical engineering , self healing hydrogels , composite material , polymer chemistry , copolymer , organic chemistry , chemistry , scanning electron microscope , engineering , catalysis
Injectable polymers are attractive materials for tissue augmentation or replacement. Thermosensitive hydrogels, especially poly(N‐isopropylacryamide), have been investigated for these applications to exploit the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) which falls between room and body temperatures. Some practical limitations to the material are the load‐bearing capabilities and the ability to bond to the host tissue. In this work, we evaluated a novel, injectable apatite‐forming material system: poly(N‐isopropylacryamide)‐co‐poly(ethyleneglycol) dimethacrylate, with the addition of tri‐methacryloxypropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS). We have previously reported that MPS concentration permits the material system to be tuned to different compressive moduli ranging from 50–700 kPa without altering the LCST of the material. Here, we explore the apatite formation of this material system in protein‐free and protein‐containing SBF. The MPS‐containing hydrogel system exhibited apatite formation throughout the gel thickness. The apatite formation was inhibited by the presence of proteins. This mechanism is likely controlled by the silanol groups (Si‐OH) in MPS, which provided attachment sites for calcium and initiated mineral dissolution from the simulated biological environments. The challenge of this material system is to balance the network‐forming and modulus‐enhancing MPS while maintaining an injectable hydrogel for potential tissue regeneration. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2007