Biomaterials Flashcards
What are biomaterials?
Any material that is designed to interact with biological system for a medical purpose
Disadvantages for traditional treatments
Small molecule drugs - side effects, difficult to target site
Surgery - Drastic, invasive and damaging to surrounding tissues
Transplants - Lack of donors, chance of rejection
What are hydrogels?
3D ‘solid like’ networks that can hold large amounts of water in swollen scaffold (90-99% water)
Cross-linked network of hydrophilic polymers display elastic behaviours.
What are the 2 categories of cross-linking?
Chemical cross-linking - covalent bonds between polymer chains
Physical cross-linking - non-covalent interactions (VdW, ionic interactions, H-bonding, entanglement)
Common synthetic polymers used in hydrogels
Poly (ethylene glycol) (PEG)
Poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA)
Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA)
Properties of PEG
Chemically and biologically inert
Easily functionalised - tunable gel properties
Can be chemically cross-linked via range of different reactions
Properties of PHEMA
Monomer precursors often contaminated with difunctional monomer = spontaneous chemically crosslinked gel formation
High mechanical strength
Biocompatible + bioinert
Monomer = Highly toxic, needs to be removed
Properties of PVA
High elasticity
Mechanically weak
Highly biocompatible + bioinert
OH groups can be functionalised
Common properties for synthetic polymers
Bioinert
Low immunogenicity
Non-degradable
Easy to functionalise
Common natural polymers in hydrogels
Collagen
Alginate
Hyaluronic acid
Properties of Collagen hydrogel
High mechanical strength bc self assembled fibres
Bioactive bc peptide sequences (3 amino acids)
Cell adhesive and biocompatible as they mimic ECM
Biodegradable by enzymes in the body
Potential contaminants extracting collagen from animals
Properties of Alginate Hydrogel
Undergo gelation fast in presence of Ca2+ (ionic crosslinks)
Not cell adhesive
Requires modification of COOH with bioactive groups
Properties of Hyaluronic acid Hydrogel
Many growth factors
V bioactive
High charge density therefore high water content
Weak physically crosslinked gel
Common properties of natural polymer hydrogels
Inherently bioactive and biocompatible
Usually cell adhesive (not Aliginate)
Biodegradable
Mechanisms of Gelation
A + B strategy (add in crosslinker funtional group B to polymer functional group B)
AB strategy (Polymer has both functional groups attached)
Conditions for ideal crosslinking
Fast gelation
Non-toxic
Selective reactivity - no side reactions
Easy to do
Disadvantages of amide coupling
Poor selectivity
Slow
Susceptible to hydrolysis