Fabrication and Characterization of π-π Stacking Peptide-Contained Double Network Hydrogels

Since the physical properties are similar to native extracellular matrices, double network (DN) hydrogels have been studied extensively in the tissue engineering. However, the double chemical crosslinked DN hydrogel is limited by poor fatigue resistance. π-π stacking is a non-covalent bonding interaction, which is essential to maintain and self-assemble the three-dimensional structure of biological proteins and nucleic acids. In this study, a robust polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA)/FFK hybrid DN hydrogel was prepared by Michael addition and π-π stacking. The hybrid DN hydrogels with π-π stacking interactions have excellent mechanical strength and fatigue resistance. The DN FFK/PEGDA hydrogels reveal great biocompatibility and hemocompatibility. The DN hydrogels containing π-π stacking have the potential to fabricate robust hybrid DN hydrogels in drug release and tissue engineering.