Non‐Osmotic Hydrogels: A Rational Strategy for Safely Degradable Hydrogels |
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| Authors: | Dr Hiroyuki Kamata Dr Keiichiro Kushiro Prof Madoka Takai Prof Ung‐il Chung Prof Takamasa Sakai |
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| Institution: | 1. Department of Bioengineering, School of Engineering, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;2. Department of Materials Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;3. Center for Disease Biology and Integrative Medicine, Division of Clinical Biotechnology, School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan;4. Division of Tissue Engineering, University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo, Japan;5. Precursory Research for Embryonic Science and Technology (Japan), Science and Technology Agency, Saitama, Japan |
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| Abstract: | Hydrogels are promising materials for biomedical applications, where timely degradation is often preferred. In the conventional design, however, the cleavage of polymer networks essentially causes considerable morphological changes (i.e., degradation‐induced swelling), triggering various medical complications. Herein, we report a rational strategy to suppress the degradation‐induced swelling based on the synthetic control of the polymer–solvent interaction parameter (χ) of constituent polymer networks. The resultant hydrogels with an optimal χ parameter (χ37 °C≈0.53; non‐osmostic hydrogels) displayed the capability to retain their original shape and degrade without generating significant swelling pressure under physiological conditions (Π37 °C<1 kPa). This concept of the safely degradable non‐osmotic hydrogel is theoretically universal, and can be exploited for other types of synthetic hydrogels in various settings. |
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| Keywords: | copolymerization degradation hydrogels polymers swelling |
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