A rapid temperature-responsive sol-gel reversible poly(N- isopropylacrylamide)-g-methylcellulose copolymer hydrogel

Wenguang Liu, Bingqi Zhang, William W. Lu, Xiaowei Li, Dunwan Zhu, Kang De Yao, Qin Wang, Chengru Zhao, Chuandong Wang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

160 Scopus citations

Abstract

Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm) was grafted to methylcellulose (MC) with various feeding ratios using ammonium persulfate and N,N,N′,N′- tetramethyl ethylene diamine as an initiator. FTIR results confirm the formation of PNIPAAm-g-MC copolymers. The temperature responsiveness of copolymer gels was investigated by turbidimetry, dynamic contact angle (DCA), differential scanning calorimetry and dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA). The results indicate that PNIPAAm-g-MC hydrogels are strongly temperature responsive. At lower contents of MC, the lower critical solution temperature (LCST) is decreased, whereas further increasing MC contents raises the LCSTs. It is observed that the phase transition of the hydrogels occurs reversibly within 1min, and near body temperature, a rigid gel can be generated in a certain range of MC content. What is more, the incorporation of MC prevents the syneresis of copolymer hydrogel. DMA measurement reveals that the storage moduli (E′) of the gels increase upon increasing MC contents, and moreover the values of E′ go up markedly above LCST. The copolymer hydrogels hold a promise as a blood vessel barrier by tuning gelation temperature, gelation time and mechanical strength.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)3005-3012
Number of pages8
JournalBiomaterials
Volume25
Issue number15
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2004

Keywords

  • Hydrogel
  • Methylcellulose
  • Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)
  • Temperature responsive

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A rapid temperature-responsive sol-gel reversible poly(N- isopropylacrylamide)-g-methylcellulose copolymer hydrogel'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this