title: Tuning PEG-DA hydrogel properties via solvent-induced phase separation (SIPS)().
abstract: Poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEG-DA) hydrogels are widely utilized to probe cell-material interactions and ultimately for a material-guided approach to tissue regeneration. In this study, PEG-DA hydrogels were fabricated via solvent-induced phase separation (SIPS) to obtain hydrogels with a broader range of tunable physical properties including morphology (e.g. porosity), swelling and modulus (G'). In contrast to conventional PEG-DA hydrogels prepared from an aqueous precursor solution, the reported SIPS protocol utilized a dichloromethane (DCM) precursor solution which was sequentially photopolymerized, dried and hydrated. Physical properties were further tailored by varying the PEG-DA wt% concentration (5 wt%-25 wt%) and M(n) (3.4k and 6k g mol (-1)). SIPS produced PEG-DA hydrogels with a macroporous morphology as well as increased G' values versus the corresponding conventional PEG-DA hydrogels. Notably, since the total swelling was not significantly changed versus the corresponding conventional PEG-DA hydrogels, pairs or series of hydrogels represent scaffolds in which morphology and hydration or G' and hydration are uncoupled. In addition, PEG-DA hydrogels prepared via SIPS exhibited enhanced degradation rates.
authors.affiliation: Texas A&M University, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Materials Science and Engineering Program, 3120 TAMU College Station, TX, USA. ; Tel: (+979) 845-2406.
authors.forename: Brennan Margaret
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Bailey
authors.forename: Vivian
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Hui
authors.forename: Ruochong
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fei
authors.forename: Melissa Ann
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Grunlan