Hydrosoluble collagen based biodegradable hybrid hydrogel for biomedical scaffold

Abstract

Hydrogel scaffolds are explored as efficient methods to repair damaged organs or tissues. In this study, we developed a hybrid hydrogel system based on collagen (Col) and PEG-derived polymer (PEGF) for biomedical scaffold. The Col-PEGF hybrid hydrogel, in which different materials were combined and sequential interpenetrating networks were built, achieved significantly enhanced mechanical strength and viscoelasticity compared with the corresponding Col hydrogel or PEGF hydrogel. Degradation test indicated that Col enabled the hybrid hydrogel to be broken down via enzymatic degradation while PEGF contributed to the anti-degradation of the hydrogel. This balanced biodegradability of Col-PEGF hydrogel would be advantageous to the application for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Moreover, the Col-PEGF hybrid hydrogel with micron-sized pores and variable moisture performed good biocompatibility to NIH-3T3 cells, and supplied a favorable environment for cell growth and proliferation. Therefore, the Col-PEGF hydrogel will provide a promising biomedical scaffold for the therapy of tissue defects.

Keywords:

• Hybrid hydrogel
• collagen
• PEGF polymer
• interpenetrating network
• biomedical scaffold

Disclosure statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This study was supported by grants from National Natural Science Foundation of China (31700708 and 81503007), Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (BK20170181).