Issue 48, 2015

Physically crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol and gelatin interpenetrating polymer network theta-gels for cartilage regeneration

Abstract

Theta-gels are hydrogels that form during the solidification and phase separation of two dislike polymers, in which a low molecular weight polymer behaves as a porogen and is removed through dialysis. For this study, interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) hydrogels were formed between polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and gelatin using theta-gel fabrication techniques, i.e., in the presence of a porogen. The addition of gelatin to a PVA theta-gel, formed with a porogen, polyethylene glycol (PEG), created macro-porous hydrogels, and increased shear storage moduli and elastic moduli, compared to PVA–gelatin scaffold controls. A reduction in PVA crystallinity was verified by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy in hydrogels fabricated using a porogen, i.e., PVA–PEG–gelatin, compared to PVA, PVA–PEG, or PVA–gelatin hydrogels alone. Van Geison staining confirmed the retention of gelatin after dialysis. A range of hydrogel moduli was achieved by optimizing PVA concentration, molecular weight, and gelatin concentration. PVA–gelatin hydrogels maintained primary human mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) viability. Soft (∼10 kPa) and stiff (∼100 kPa) PVA–gelatin hydrogels containing type II collagen significantly increased glycosaminoglycan (GAG) production compared to controls. PVA–gelatin hydrogels, formed using theta-gel techniques, warrant further investigation as articular cartilage tissue engineering scaffolds.

Graphical abstract: Physically crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol and gelatin interpenetrating polymer network theta-gels for cartilage regeneration

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
22 May 2015
Accepted
05 Nov 2015
First published
09 Nov 2015

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2015,3, 9242-9249

Author version available

Physically crosslinked polyvinyl alcohol and gelatin interpenetrating polymer network theta-gels for cartilage regeneration

T. Miao, E. J. Miller, C. McKenzie and R. A. Oldinski, J. Mater. Chem. B, 2015, 3, 9242 DOI: 10.1039/C5TB00989H

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