Wang Changping, Liu Chongyi, Wei Qiyao, Yang Lei, Yang Peng, Li Yiwen, Cheng Yiyun
South China Advanced Institute for Soft Matter Science and Technology, South China University of Technology, Guangzhou 510640, China.
Shanghai Key Laboratory of Regulatory Biology, School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai 200241, China.
Research (Wash D C). 2020 Sep 4;2020:6563091. doi: 10.34133/2020/6563091. eCollection 2020.
Photocleavable hydrogels are of great importance in the field of controlled drug delivery, stem cell fate regulation, surface patterning, and intelligent devices. However, the development of novel photocleavable gel systems by visible light is usually met with challenges such as the lack of efficient and tunable photocleavable groups and reactions. Herein, we reported the facile fabrication of a new type of photocleavable hydrogels by the direct gelation of 4-arm thiol-terminated polyethylene glycol with 3,6-dichloro-1,2,4,5-tetrazine the formation of S,S-tetrazine linkages. The prepared hydrogels underwent efficient degradation upon irradiation by ultraviolet or green light, and the degradation kinetics could be significantly promoted by hydrogen peroxide. Correspondingly, the hydrogels loaded with calcium peroxide microparticles or glucose oxidase/catalase enzymes enabled the precise and efficient photocontrol of gel degradation and drug release for cancer treatment. This work offers a promising and facile strategy towards the fabrication of visible light cleavable hydrogels with tunable and on-demand drug release properties.
光可裂解水凝胶在可控药物递送、干细胞命运调控、表面图案化和智能设备领域具有重要意义。然而，通过可见光开发新型光可裂解凝胶系统通常面临挑战，如缺乏高效且可调节的光可裂解基团和反应。在此，我们报道了通过四臂硫醇封端的聚乙二醇与3,6 - 二氯 - 1,2,4,5 - 四嗪直接凝胶化制备新型光可裂解水凝胶——形成S,S - 四嗪键。制备的水凝胶在紫外光或绿光照射下能有效降解，而过氧化氢能显著促进降解动力学。相应地，负载过氧化钙微粒或葡萄糖氧化酶/过氧化氢酶的水凝胶能够实现凝胶降解和药物释放的精确有效光控，用于癌症治疗。这项工作为制备具有可调谐和按需药物释放特性的可见光可裂解水凝胶提供了一种有前景且简便的策略。
