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Published on: October 7, 2016
Cysteine-Silver-Polymer Systems for the Preparation of Hydrogels and Films with Potential Applications in
Dmitry V Vishnevetskii1,2, Arif R Mekhtiev2, Dmitry V Averkin3
1Department of Physical Chemistry, Tver State University, Building 33, Zhelyabova Str., Tver 170100, Russia.
Abstract:
Herein, the problem concerning the poorer mechanical properties of gels based on low molecular weight gelators (LMWGs)-L-cysteine and silver nitrate-was solved by the addition of various polymers-polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethylene glycol (PEG)-to the initial cysteine-silver sol (CSS). The physicochemical methods of analysis-viscosimetry, UV spectroscopy, DLS, and SEM-identified that cysteine-silver hydrogels (CSG) based on PVA possess the best rheological properties and porous microstructure (the average pore size is 2-10 µm) compared to gels without the polymer or with PVP or PEG. Such gels are able to form cysteine-silver cryogels (CSC) and then porous cysteine-silver films (CSF) with an average pore size of 10-20 µm and good mechanical, swelling, and adhesion to skin characteristics as long as the structure of CSS particles remains stable. In vitro experiments have shown that hydrogels are non-toxic to normal human fibroblast cells. The obtained materials could potentially be applied to regenerative medicine.
