Article
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Nanocomposite Hydrogels with Polymer-Grafted Silica Nanoparticles, Using Glucose Oxidase
Version 1
: Received: 26 May 2023 / Approved: 29 May 2023 / Online: 29 May 2023 (05:36:51 CEST)
A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.
Mohammed, A.A.; Li, S.; Sang, T.; Jones, J.R.; Pinna, A. Nanocomposite Hydrogels with Polymer Grafted Silica Nanoparticles, Using Glucose Oxidase. Gels 2023, 9, 486. Mohammed, A.A.; Li, S.; Sang, T.; Jones, J.R.; Pinna, A. Nanocomposite Hydrogels with Polymer Grafted Silica Nanoparticles, Using Glucose Oxidase. Gels 2023, 9, 486.
Abstract
Nanocomposite hydrogels offer remarkable potential for applications in bone tissue engineering. They are synthesized through the chemical or physical crosslinking of polymers and nanomaterials, allowing for the enhancement of their behaviour by modifying the properties and compositions of the nanomaterials involved. However, their mechanical properties require further enhancement to meet the demands of bone tissue engineering. Here, we present an approach to improve the mechanical properties of nanocomposite hydrogels by incorporating polymer grafted silica nanoparticles into a double network inspired hydrogel (gSNP Gels). The gSNP Gels were synthesised via a graft polymerization process using a redox initiator. gSNP Gels were formed by grafting 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropanesulfonic acid (AMPS) as the first network gel followed by a sequential second network acrylamide (AAm) onto amine functionalized silica nanoparticles (ASNPs). We utilized glucose oxidase (GOx), to create an oxygen-free atmosphere during polymerization resulting in higher polymer conversion compared to argon degassing. The gSNP Gels showed excellent compressive strengths of 13.9 ± 5.5 MPa, a strain of 69.6 ± 6.4%, and a water content of 63.4% ± 1.8. The synthesis technique demonstrates a promising approach to enhance the mechanical properties of hydrogels, which can have significant implications for bone tissue engineering and other soft tissue applications.
Keywords
Polymer grafted silica nanoparticles; redox polymerisation; biomaterials; glucose oxidase; hydrogels, tissue engineer
Subject
Engineering, Bioengineering
Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
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