Influence of network structure on the degradation of photo-cross-linked PLA-b-PEG-b-PLA hydrogels

Triblock copolymers of functionalized poly(lactic acid)-b-poly(ethylene glycol)-b-poly(lactic acid) (PLA-b-PEG-b-PLA) have been widely investigated as precursors for fabricating resorbable polymeric drug delivery vehicles and tissue engineering scaffolds. Previous studies show degradation and erosion behavior of PLA-b-PEG-b-PLA hydrogels to rely on macromer chemistry as well as structural characteristics of the cross-linked networks. In this research, the degradation kinetics of diacrylated PLA-b-PEG-b-PLA copolymers as soluble macromers and cross-linked gels are directly compared as a function of macromer concentration, buffer pH, and ionic strength. The pseudo first-order rate constants for degradation of soluble macromers increase with water concentration and show a minimum at intermediate pH values, but are insensitive to ionic strength. The degradation rate constants for covalently cross-linked gels display a greater sensitivity to local water concentration and a minimum at lower pH values than corresponding soluble macromers. In addition, ionic strength significantly affects the rate of gel degradation due to the direct correlation between the degree of network ionization and gel water content.