Thermoresponsive macroporous scaffolds prepared by emulsion templating

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Biomaterials Engineering

Background:

• Conventional hydrogel preparation often involves chemical crosslinking, which can lead to residual toxic components.
• Developing safe and effective injectable scaffolds for biomedical applications remains a significant challenge.
• High internal phase emulsions (HIPEs) offer a templating route for creating macroporous polymer networks.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel, versatile method for fabricating non-covalently crosslinked polyHIPEs hydrogels.
• To utilize thermo-responsive polymers for creating interconnected porous hydrogel structures via emulsion templating.
• To explore a safer alternative for injectable scaffolds by eliminating chemical crosslinking steps.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of oil-in-water HIPEs with aqueous phases containing thermo-responsive linear polymers.
• Utilizing the reversible physical aggregation of polymer chains triggered by temperature changes to form the hydrogel network.
• Emulsion templating to maintain the interconnected porous structure of the polyHIPEs.

Main Results:

• Successfully prepared non-covalently crosslinked polyHIPEs hydrogels with interconnected porous architectures.
• Demonstrated that the porous structure is maintained through reversible physical aggregation of thermo-responsive polymers.
• The solidification process requires no chemical reaction, relying solely on a thermal trigger.

Conclusions:

• This emulsion templating method provides a safe and efficient route to produce porous hydrogels.
• The absence of chemical polymerization and residual monomers makes these hydrogels suitable for injectable scaffold applications.
• The thermo-responsive nature offers tunable properties for potential biomedical uses.