Work

Rate-based approach for controlling the mechanical properties of ‘thiol–ene’ hydrogels formed with visible light

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: H NMR) correlated with these mechanical properties measurements, suggesting that both dangling end groups and looping contribute to the observed mechanical properties. Dangling end groups provide reactive handles for temporal stiffening of hydrogels with a secondary UV-initiated thiol-ene polymerization, where an increase in Young's modulus by a factor of ~ 2.5x was observed. These studies demonstrate how the rate of photopolymerization can be tuned with irradiation wavelength, intensity, and time to control the properties of synthetic hydrogels, which may prove useful in a variety of applications from coatings to biomaterials for controlled cell culture and regenerative medicine.

Source: Polymer Chemistry

DOI: 10.1039/c9py00447e

Authors: Katherine L. Wiley, Elisa M. Ovadia, Christopher J. Calo, Rebecca E. Huber, April M. Kloxin

Institution: University of Delaware

Language: English

Topic: Hydrogels: synthesis, properties, applications

Subfield: Molecular Medicine

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Institute of General Medical Sciences

Awards: Discovery of Chemical Probes and Therapeutic Leads, Phase II, Molecular Design of Advanced Biomaterials