Biointeractive hydrogel materials become smarter than ever
To rise to the inevitable growth in the biomedical materials industry, the EU-funded NEOGEL (Multi-disciplinary training environment for next generation hydrogel-based smart bio-interactive materials) project has trained four early stage researchers (ESRs) in the development of smart resorbable hydrogels as platform materials for tissue engineering. The focus lay on cross-disciplinary training during academia-industry collaborations. Individual projects worked on novel hydrogels based on polypeptides. Using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), analysis of industrial hydrogels determined network structures as well as novel nanoparticles suitable for incorporation into hydrogels. NMR-supported structure property studies provided new insights into how microscopic order/dynamics produce the emergent structural and release properties of industrially relevant hydrogels. NMR results were correlated with material properties to guide the development of next generation gels. Incorporation of magnetic nanoparticles to obtain gels that release active ingredients triggered by an external magnetic field formed the basis of another NEOGEL research project. They worked on development of suitable magnetic particles as well as modification of their surface chemistry to react with the hydrogel. Drawbacks of first generation polypeptide gels include low reactivity. NEOGEL researchers replaced the tyrosine cross-linking with tryptophan, which resulted in mechanically more stable and biocompatible hydrogels. One notable application was the design of hybrid gels for dual release devices from drugs with a hydrophobic core and a polylysine based hydrophilic shell. A new route for clean synthesis of polypeptide hydrogel precursors for a high level of structural control used UV initiation. Further research work indicated that these precursors can be used in surface decoration of planar and particulate materials for construction of biosensing surfaces. All NEOGEL ESRs have secured long-term placement in industry, not only advancing their own research goals but contributing to the dissemination of project results. Wide coverage has also been achieved through conferences and publication in high-profile science journals.
