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Updated: Mar 22, 2026

Microwave-assisted Functionalization of Polyethylene glycol and On-resin Peptides for Use in Chain Polymerizations and Hydrogel Formation
Published on: October 29, 2013
Enhanced User-Control of Small Molecule Drug Release from a Poly(ethylene glycol) Hydrogel via
E M Nehls1, A M Rosales2, K S Anseth3
1Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder Colorado, 80303, United States.
None:
We present a versatile and facile method to enhance user-control of small molecule drug release from a poly(ethylene glycol)-based hydrogel using the host/guest complex formed between an azobenzene derivative guest and a β-cyclodextrin host. A model drug is formed from a short peptide containing a fluorophore and an azobenzene functional group on one terminus. Upon irradiation with UV light, azobenzene isomerization leads to decreased complex formation and an on-demand acceleratation of the release rate of an entrapped model drug.
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