Gelator-polysaccharide hybrid hydrogel for selective and controllable dye release

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Low-Molecular-Weight-Gelator (LMWG) hydrogels have shown potential in various applications.
• Modifying LMWG hydrogels with polysaccharides can enhance their properties.
• Sodium alginate is a biocompatible hydrophilic polysaccharide.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize and characterize 1,4-bi(phenylalanine-diglycol)-benzene (PDB) based LMWG hydrogels modified with sodium alginate.
• To investigate the structural and physicochemical properties of the resulting hybrid hydrogels.
• To evaluate the drug release behavior of the hybrid hydrogels using dyes as model drugs.

Main Methods:

• Synthesis of PDB-based LMWG hydrogels and hybrid hydrogels with sodium alginate.
• Characterization using Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, (1)H Nuclear Magnetic Resonance ((1)H NMR), X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), Ultraviolet-Visible (UV-Vis), and circular dichroism (CD).
• Assessment of mechanical properties, water retention, and dye release kinetics.

Main Results:

• Confirmation of a β-turn arrangement of PDB gelators and formation of a semi-interpenetrating network (semi-IPN) via hydrogen bonding.
• Hybrid hydrogels demonstrated superior mechanical strength and water retention compared to pure LMWG hydrogels.
• Hybrid hydrogels exhibited selective and controllable release of model drug dyes, unlike PDB hydrogels.

Conclusions:

• LMWG-polysaccharide hybrid hydrogels possess enhanced physicochemical properties.
• The developed hybrid hydrogels show potential as effective drug delivery vehicles.
• The selective and controllable release profile makes them suitable for targeted drug delivery systems.