title: Highly elastomeric poly(glycerol sebacate)-co-poly(ethylene glycol) amphiphilic block copolymers.
abstract: Poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS), a tough elastomer, has been proposed for tissue engineering applications due to its desired mechanical properties, biocompatibility and controlled degradation. Despite interesting physical and chemical properties, PGS shows limited water uptake capacity (∼2%), thus constraining its utility for soft tissue engineering. Therefore, a modification of PGS that would mimic the water uptake and water retention characteristics of natural extracellular matrix is beneficial for enhancing its utility for biomedical applications. Here, we report the synthesis and characterization of highly elastomeric poly(glycerol sebacate)-co-polyethylene glycol (PGS-co-PEG) block copolymers with controlled water uptake characteristics. By tailoring the water uptake property, it is possible to engineer scaffolds with customized degradation and mechanical properties. The addition of PEG results in almost 15-fold increase in water uptake capacity of PGS, and improves its mechanical stability under dynamic loading conditions. PGS-co-PEG polymers show elastomeric properties and can be subjected to serve deformation such as bending and stretching. The Young's modulus of PGS-co-PEG can be tuned from 13 kPa to 2.2 MPa by altering the amount of PEG within the copolymer network. Compared to PGS, more than six-fold increase in elongation was observed upon PEG incorporation. In addition, the rate of degradation increases with an increase in PEG concentration, indicating that degradation rate of PGS can be regulated. PGS-co-PEG polymers also support cell proliferation, and thus can be used for a range of tissue engineering applications.
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Alpesh
authors: A
authors: Patel
authors: Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA; David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Akhilesh K
authors: AK
authors: Gaharwar
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Torino 10129, Italy.
authors: Giorgio
authors: G
authors: Iviglia
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; School of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology, Beijing, Beijing 100083, China.
authors: Hongbin
authors: H
authors: Zhang
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Shilpaa
authors: S
authors: Mukundan
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Silvia M
authors: SM
authors: Mihaila
authors: Department of Electronics and Telecommunications, Politecnico di Torino, Torino 10129, Italy; Center for Space Human Robotics, Italian Institute of Technology, Torino, Italy.
authors: Danilo
authors: D
authors: Demarchi
authors: Center for Biomedical Engineering, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; David H. Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA. Electronic address: alik@rics.bwh.harvard.edu.
authors: Ali
authors: A
authors: Khademhosseini
mesh_terms: D000042:Absorption; D000818:Animals; D019245:Compressive Strength; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents / Q000737:chemistry; D003651:Decanoates / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D020724:Elastomers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D005990:Glycerol / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D041681:NIH 3T3 Cells; D011091:Polyesters / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry; D011108:Polymers / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D013501:Surface-Active Agents / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry*; D013696:Temperature; D013718:Tensile Strength; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D003651:Decanoates; D020724:Elastomers; D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D013501:Surface-Active Agents; C469892:poly(glycerol-sebacate); C547083:poly(glycerol-sebacate-glycolic acid); D014867:Water; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols; D005990:Glycerol