可注射水凝胶及其在再生医学领域的应用

近年来,由工程生物材料制成的可注射治疗剂正变得越来越流行,并推动传统的临床实践走向微创化.可注射水凝胶由于其可调控的物理及化学特性、可控的降解性能、高含水量以及在微创方式下实现递送的能力,在组织工程和药物递送领域中变得越来越重要.研究者们已开发出例如原位交联水凝胶、大孔水凝胶、水凝胶微粒、动态交联水凝胶等一系列性能独特的可注射水凝胶.通过调控水凝胶的固含量和交联密度,并引入适当的共价或非共价相互作用,例如静电相互作用、疏水相互作用等,这些水凝胶可在注射过程中实现生物活性分子的递送.同时,可注射水凝胶亦可用于细胞的递送,提供细胞培养所需的三维环境,并通过调控力学性能、化学修饰、生物功能化修饰等手段调控细胞黏附、增殖、分化等行为.本文旨在回顾近年来可注射水凝胶的设计和制备的相关进展,以及其在再生医学中的应用,并对该领域存在的挑战和潜力进行了展望.

Injectable Hydrogels for Regenerative Medicine

Injectable therapeutics enabled by engineered biomaterials are becoming increasingly popular,transforming traditional clinical practice to become less invasive and more effective.Compared with traditional biomaterials,injectable biomaterials allow for more precise implantation into deeply enclosed anatomical locations and for the repair of irregularly shaped lesions,demonstrating great translational potential.Injectable hydrogels have become increasingly important in the fields of drug delivery,tissue engineering and regenerative medicine due to their tunable physical and chemical properties,controllable degradation,biomimetic water content,and the ability to achieve delivery in a minimally invasive manner.Researchers have developed a series of injectable hydrogels with unique properties through in situ gelation,macroporous hydrogels,microgels,and shear thinning.Importantly,these hydrogels can be used to achieve the delivery of bioactive molecules and cells during the injection process and provide the three-dimensional microenvironment required for cell culture.Rationale modifications of the hydrogel biophysical and biochemical properties enable precise regulation on cellular behaviors such as adhesion,proliferation,and differentiation.This article aims to review the recent advances in the design and preparation of injectable hydrogels and their applications in regenerative medicine and the key challenges to be addressed in future research work.