nn0c04522_si_001.pdf (1.69 MB)
Remotely Triggered Liquefaction of Hydrogel Materials
journal contribution
posted on 2020-07-02, 22:30 authored by Søren
L. Pedersen, Tin H. Huynh, Philipp Pöschko, Anne Sofie Fruergaard, Morten T. Jarlstad Olesen, Yaqing Chen, Henrik Birkedal, Guruprakash Subbiahdoss, Erik Reimhult, Jan Thøgersen, Alexander N. ZelikinAdaptable behavior such as triggered
disintegration affords a broad
scope and utility for (bio)materials in diverse applications in materials
science and engineering. The impact of such materials continues to
grow due to the increased importance of environmental considerations
as well as the increased use of implants in medical practices. However,
examples of such materials are still few. In this work, we engineer
triggered liquefaction of hydrogel biomaterials in response to internal,
localized heating, mediated by near-infrared light as external stimulus.
This adaptable behavior is engineered into the readily available physical
hydrogels based on poly(vinyl alcohol), using gold nanoparticles or
an organic photothermal dye as heat generators. Upon laser light irradiation,
engineered biomaterials underwent liquefaction within seconds. Pulsed
laser light irradiation afforded controlled, on-demand release of
the incorporated cargo, successful for small molecules as well as
proteins (enzymes) in their biofunctional form.