title: Physical Cross-Linking Starch-Based Zwitterionic Hydrogel Exhibiting Excellent Biocompatibility, Protein Resistance, and Biodegradability.
abstract: In this work, a novel starch-based zwitterionic copolymer, starch-graft-poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate) (ST-g-PSBMA), was synthesized via Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization. Starch, which formed the main chain, can be degraded completely in vivo, and the pendent segments of PSBMA endowed the copolymer with excellent protein resistance properties. This ST-g-PSBMA copolymer could self-assemble into a physical hydrogel in normal saline, and studies of the formation mechanism indicated that the generation of the physical hydrogel was driven by electrostatic interactions between PSBMA segments. The obtained hydrogels were subjected to detailed analysis by scanning electron microscopy, swelling ratio, protein resistance, and rheology tests. Toxicity and hemolysis analysis demonstrated that the ST-g-PSBMA hydrogels possess excellent biocompatibility and hemocompatibility. Moreover, the cytokine secretion assays (IL-6, TNF-α, and NO) confirmed that ST-g-PSBMA hydrogels had low potential to trigger the activation of macrophages and were suitable for in vivo biomedical applications. On the basis of these in vitro results, the ST-g-PSBMA hydrogels were implanted in SD rats. The tissue responses to hydrogel implantation and the hydrogel degradation in vivo were determined by histological analysis (Hematoxylin and eosin, Van Gieson, and Masson's Trichrome stains). The results presented in this study demonstrate that the physical cross-linking, starch-based zwitterionic hydrogels possess excellent protein resistance, low macrophage-activation properties, and good biocompatibility, and they are a promising candidate for an in vivo biomedical application platform.
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Lei
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Yabin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Tianjin Key Laboratory of Biomedical Materials, Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences & Peking Union Medical College , Tianjin 300192, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Qiangsong
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Tianjin State Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin 300193, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Xin
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Boguang
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ji
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Dianyu
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.affiliation: Tianjin State Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin 300193, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: Tianjin State Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine , Tianjin 300193, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Yuanlu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cui
authors.affiliation: School of Chemical Engineering and Technology, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.|Key Laboratory of Systems Bioengineering of Ministry of Education, Tianjin University , Tianjin 300072, P. R. China.
authors.forename: Fanglian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001672:Biocompatible Materials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000592:standards; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects*; D008689:Methacrylates; D011108:Polymers; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013213:Starch / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D020100:Hydrogels; D008689:Methacrylates; D011108:Polymers; D013213:Starch
keywords: biocompatible biodegradable; hydrogel; protein resistance; starch; zwitterionic