title: High performance and reversible ionic polypeptide hydrogel based on charge-driven assembly for biomedical applications.
abstract: In the pursuit of new strategies for the design and synthesis of high performance, physically associated hydrogels, dynamic materials formed through electrostatic interactions can serve as a powerful model. Here, we introduce a convenient strategy to obtain biodegradable hydrogels from ABA triblock ionic polypeptides formed by mixing poly(L-glutamic acid)-block-poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(L-glutamic acid) (PGA-PEG-PGA) with poly(L-lysine)-block-poly(ethylene glycol)-block-poly(L-lysine) (PLL-PEG-PLL). The hydrogels showed tunable physical properties, high strength and reversible response. The reactive function groups in the ionic blocks can conjugate with oppositely charged drugs or proteins and allow for further modification. These ionic ABA triblock polyelectrolytes can also encapsulate intact cells without significantly compromising cell viability, suggesting that the hydrogels have excellent cytocompatibility. In vivo evaluation performed in rats with subcutaneous injection indicated that the gels were formed and degraded, and hematoxylin and eosin staining suggested good biocompatibility in vivo. In addition, these advantages, combined with the synthetic accessibility of the copolymer, make this cross-linking system a flexible and powerful new tool for the development of injectable hydrogels for biomedical applications.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, PR China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100039, PR China.
authors.forename: Haitao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, PR China.
authors.forename: Xiuli
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhuang
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, PR China.
authors.forename: Chaoliang
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China. Electronic address: weiyen@tsinghua.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Polymer Ecomaterials, Changchun Institute of Applied Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130022, PR China. Electronic address: xschen@ciac.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Xuesi
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D011099:Polyglutamic Acid / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D011107:Polylysine / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels; D011107:Polylysine; D011099:Polyglutamic Acid; D011092:Polyethylene Glycols
keywords: Charge-driven; Injectable hydrogel; Ionic polypeptides; Reversible response