Team’s new hydrogel a breakthrough
Print Edition
RESEARCHERS at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology have developed a protein-based light-responsive hydrogel that could open doors for future biomedical applications.
Hydrogels, also known as soft matter in the medical world, are leading materials for biomedical applications such as drug delivery and stem cell therapy.
But traditional hydrogels, used in products such as facial masks and contact lenses, are made up of either synthetic polymers or biological extracts such as animal collagen, and likely to cause allergies. They cannot fully mimic the complex biological environment needed for cell growth and development.
The hydrogel developed by the team led by Sun Fei, an assistant professor in the university’s chemical and biological engineering department, can act as a carrier for stem cells. It can also control the time and manner of drug delivery inside human body.
To create the hydrogel, the team assembled genetically-engineered proteins into molecular networks.
The synthesis relies solely on bacterial culturing, which is a process similar to fermentation. The composition of the resulting hydrogel resembles that of human tissue and thus can be used to deliver live cells into human bodies while potentially minimizing allergies and rejection.
As a drug carrier, the photo-responsive hydrogel can quickly switch from solid to liquid on exposure to light, thus allowing drugs to be released into the body in a controlled manner.
“Demand for smart hydrogels is growing, the direct assembly of stimuli-responsive proteins into hydrogels opens up enormous opportunities not just for future material biology, but also medical treatment,” Sun said.
“In theory, hydrogels can serve as carriers for stem cells in regenerative medicine to promote the healing of damaged organs, which means organ transplantation may no longer be patients’ only solution in the future,” he added.
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