Guangdong Provincial Laboratory of Chemistry and Fine Chemical Engineering Jieyang Centre, Jieyang 515200, China.
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources Biorefinery, School of Chemical Engineering and Light Industry, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2024 Jun 5;16(22):28134-28146. doi: 10.1021/acsami.4c03063. Epub 2024 May 20.
Vessel transplantation is currently considered the "gold standard" treatment for cardiovascular disease. However, ideal artificial vascular grafts should possess good biocompatibility and mechanical strength that match those of native autologous vascular tissue to promote in vivo tissue regeneration. In this study, a series of dynamic cross-linking double-network hydrogels and the resultant hydrogel tubes were prepared. The hydrogels (named PCO), composed of rigid poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), flexible carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS), and a cross-linker of aldehyde-based β-cyclodextrin (OCD), were formed in a double-network structure with multiple dynamical cross-linking including dynamic imine bonds, hydrogen bonds, and microcrystalline regions. The PCO hydrogels exhibited superior mechanical strength, good network stability, and fatigue resistance. Additionally, it demonstrated excellent cell and blood compatibility. The results showed that the introduction of CMCS/OCD led to a significant increase in the proliferation rate of endothelial cells seeded on the surface of the hydrogel. The hemolysis rate in the test was lower than 0.3%, and both protein adsorption and platelet adhesion were reduced, indicating an excellent anticoagulant function. The plasma recalcification time test results showed that endogenous coagulation was alleviated to some extent. When formed into blood vessels and incubated with blood, no thrombus formation was observed, and there was minimal red blood cell aggregation. Therefore, this novel hydrogel tube, with excellent mechanical properties, exhibits antiadhesive characteristics toward blood cells and proteins, as well as antithrombotic properties, making it hold tremendous potential for applications in the biomedical and engineering fields.
血管移植目前被认为是心血管疾病的“金标准”治疗方法。然而，理想的人工血管移植物应具有良好的生物相容性和机械强度，与天然自体血管组织相匹配，以促进体内组织再生。在本研究中，制备了一系列动态交联双网络水凝胶及其所得水凝胶管。水凝胶（命名为 PCO）由刚性的聚乙烯醇（PVA）、柔性的羧甲基壳聚糖（CMCS）和基于醛的β-环糊精（OCD）交联剂组成，具有多重动态交联的双网络结构，包括动态亚胺键、氢键和微晶区。PCO 水凝胶表现出优异的机械强度、良好的网络稳定性和耐疲劳性。此外，它还表现出优异的细胞和血液相容性。结果表明，CMCS/OCD 的引入显著提高了内皮细胞在水凝胶表面的增殖率。测试中的溶血率低于 0.3%，并且蛋白质吸附和血小板黏附均减少，表明具有优异的抗凝功能。血浆复钙时间测试结果表明，内源性凝血在一定程度上得到缓解。当形成血管并与血液孵育时，未观察到血栓形成，并且红细胞聚集很少。因此，这种新型水凝胶管具有优异的机械性能，表现出对血细胞和蛋白质的抗黏附特性以及抗血栓形成特性，在生物医学和工程领域具有巨大的应用潜力。
