Injectable Interpenetrating Network Hydrogels via
Kinetically Orthogonal Reactive Mixing of Functionalized Polymeric
Precursors
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Abstract
The enhanced mechanics, unique chemistries,
and potential for domain
formation in interpenetrating network (IPN) hydrogels have attracted
significant interest in the context of biomedical applications. However,
conventional IPNs are not directly injectable in a biological context,
limiting their potential utility in such applications. Herein, we
report a fully injectable and thermoresponsive interpenetrating polymer
network formed by simultaneous reactive mixing of hydrazone cross-linked
poly(<i>N</i>-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM), and thiosuccinimide
cross-linked poly(<i>N</i>-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP). The
resulting IPN gels rapidly (<1 min) after injection without the
need for heat, UV irradiation, or small-molecule cross-linkers. The
IPNs, cross-linked by kinetically orthogonal mechanisms, showed a
significant synergistic enhancement in shear storage modulus compared
to the individual component networks as well as distinctive pore morphology,
degradation kinetics, and thermal swelling; in particular, significantly
lower hysteresis was observed over the thermal phase transition relative
to single-network PNIPAM hydrogels