title: A Biocompatible and Biodegradable Protein Hydrogel with Green and Red Autofluorescence: Preparation, Characterization and In Vivo Biodegradation Tracking and Modeling.
abstract: Because of its good biocompatibility and biodegradability, albumins such as bovine serum albumin (BSA) and human serum albumin (HSA) have found a wide range of biomedical applications. Herein, we report that glutaraldehyde cross-linked BSA (or HSA) forms a novel fluorescent biological hydrogel, exhibiting new green and red autofluorescence in vitro and in vivo without the use of any additional fluorescent labels. UV-vis spectra studies, in conjunction with the fluorescence spectra studies including emission, excitation and synchronous scans, indicated that three classes of fluorescent compounds are presumably formed during the gelation process. SEM, FTIR and mechanical tests were further employed to investigate the morphology, the specific chemical structures and the mechanical strength of the as-prepared autofluorescent hydrogel, respectively. Its biocompatibility and biodegradability were also demonstrated through extensive in vitro and in vivo studies. More interestingly, the strong red autofluorescence of the as-prepared hydrogel allows for conveniently and non-invasively tracking and modeling its in vivo degradation based on the time-dependent fluorescent images of mice. A mathematical model was proposed and was in good agreement with the experimental results. The developed facile strategy to prepare novel biocompatible and biodegradable autofluorescent protein hydrogels could significantly expand the scope of protein hydrogels in biomedical applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Xiaoyu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Xiangcheng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Derek
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hargrove
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Donghui
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Song
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Qiuchen
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Xiuling
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Tai-Hsi
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Fan
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Youjun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.|Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT 06269, USA.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Lei
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000737:chemistry*; D002470:Cell Survival; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents / Q000737:chemistry; D005453:Fluorescence; D005976:Glutaral / Q000737:chemistry; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate / Q000737:chemistry*; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D051379:Mice; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000737:chemistry; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D011506:Proteins; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; D005976:Glutaral
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