Synthesis and characterization of a multi-sensitive crosslinked injectable hydrogel based on Pluronic

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Injectable hydrogels are promising for drug delivery and tissue engineering.
• Conventional Pluronic hydrogels have limitations in mechanical strength and responsiveness.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize a novel multi-sensitive, chemically crosslinked injectable hydrogel.
• To enhance the mechanical strength and responsiveness of Pluronic F127-based hydrogels.

Main Methods:

• Chemical crosslinking of Pluronic F127 derivatives (P-A and P-B) with disulfide linkages.
• Characterization using 1H NMR spectroscopy and Gel Permeation Chromatography (GPC).
• Rheological analysis to assess mechanical properties and responsiveness.

Main Results:

• Successful synthesis of a novel multi-sensitive hydrogel with strong mechanical strength.
• Significantly altered sol-gel transition behaviors under physiological conditions (lower critical gelation concentrations and temperatures).
• Tunable hydrogel moduli influenced by molecular weight, pH, redox potential, and temperature.

Conclusions:

• The developed hydrogel offers improved mechanical properties and multi-stimuli responsiveness compared to traditional Pluronic hydrogels.
• The tunable nature of the hydrogel makes it a versatile platform for various biomedical applications.