Hyaluronic Acid-Based Hydrogels
Hyaluronic acid is a natural linear polysaccharide formed by repeating units of D-glucuronic acid and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine disaccharide, which can be modified and processed to form hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels. Due to the biocompatibility, biodegradability, tunable properties, and native bio-functionality of hyaluronic acid, hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels are increasingly versatile for a myriad of applications, especially in biomedicine.
Preparation
The preparation methods of hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels mainly include covalent crosslinking and supramolecular and non-covalent assembly.
Covalent crosslinking is a method to prepare hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels, which provides direct functionality to these hydrogels. At present, many of the specific and orthogonal "click" chemistry has been used to prepare hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels. For example, strain-promoted [3+2] cycloaddition "click" chemistry between hyaluronic acid modified with either azide or cyclooctyne groups can be used to form hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels.
- Supramolecular and non-covalent interactions
Supramolecular and non-covalent interactions have also been advanced for the formation of hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels. The interactions are reversible, assembling and disassembling in response to physical or chemical perturbations, which allows hydrogels to sense and respond to local cues. For example, hyaluronic acid is modified with b-cyclodextrin (b-CD) and adamantane molecules (a class of supramolecules) to yield shear-thinning and self-healing hydrogels due to the inclusion complex formation between b-CD and adamantane molecules.
Applications
Recently, hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels have attracted widely interest due to their superior physical and chemical characteristics, as well as biocompatibility. Studies have shown that hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels have wide applications in 3D bioprinting, drug delivery, wound healing, tissue engineering, infertility rehabilitation, wound dressings, and osteoarthritis. As far as 3D printing is concerned, it is a technology that can rapidly process cell-loaded biomaterials to prepare personalized scaffolds for repairing defective tissues, tissue regeneration, and even printing tissues or organs. Hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels are among the most promising bioink materials for 3D bioprinting, which will help to further promote the development of 3D bioprinting and accelerate the clinical translation of related products.
Our Products
Alfa Chemistry is a leading global supplier of hydrogels. Our experienced scientists focus on the production and performance improvement of hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels. Our products include but are not limited to the following. Please contact us to customize the hyaluronic acid-based hydrogels you need, and we will provide you with high quality products according to your detailed requirements.
- Hyaluronic acid hydrogel
- Hyaluronic acid nanomicells loaded hydrogel
- Injectable hydrogel loaded with fluorinated hyaluronic acid nanoparticles
Please kindly note that our products and services are for research use only.
