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Arslan A, Vanmol K, Dobos A, Natale A, Van Hoorick J, Roose P, Van den Bergen H, Chalyan T, Ovsianikov A, Baudis S, Rogiers V, Vanhaecke T, Rodrigues RM, Thienpont H, Van Erps J, Van Vlierberghe S, Dubruel P. Increasing the Microfabrication Performance of Synthetic Hydrogel Precursors through Molecular Design. Biomacromolecules 2021; 22:4919-4932. [PMID: 34723502 DOI: 10.1021/acs.biomac.1c00704] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Implementation of hydrogel precursors in two-photon polymerization (2PP) technology provides promising opportunities in the tissue engineering field thanks to their soft characteristics and similarity to extracellular matrix. Most of the hydrogels, however, are prone to post-fabrication deformations, leading to a mismatch between the computer-aided design and the printed structure. In the present work, we have developed novel synthetic hydrogel precursors to overcome the limitations associated with 2PP processing of conventional hydrogel precursors such as post-processing deformations and a narrow processing window. The precursors are based on a poly(ethylene glycol) backbone containing urethane linkers and are, on average, functionalized with six acrylate terminal groups (three on each terminal group). As a benchmark material, we exploited a precursor with an identical backbone and urethane linkers, albeit functionalized with two acrylate groups, that were reported as state-of-the-art. An in-depth characterization of the hexafunctional precursors revealed a reduced swelling ratio (<0.7) and higher stiffness (>36 MPa Young's modulus) compared to their difunctional analogs. The superior physical properties of the newly developed hydrogels lead to 2PP-based fabrication of stable microstructures with excellent shape fidelity at laser scanning speeds up to at least 90 mm s-1, in contrast with the distorted structures of conventional difunctional precursors. The hydrogel films and microscaffolds revealed a good cell interactivity after functionalization of their surface with a gelatin methacrylamide-based coating. The proposed synthesis strategy provides a one-pot and scalable synthesis of hydrogel building blocks that can overcome the current limitations associated with 2PP fabrication of hydrogel microstructures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aysu Arslan
- Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S4-Bis, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Koen Vanmol
- Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT), Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Flanders Make, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Agnes Dobos
- Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S4-Bis, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Alessandra Natale
- Department of In Vitro Toxicology and Dermato-Cosmetology (IVTD), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, Jette, 1090 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Jasper Van Hoorick
- Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S4-Bis, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Patrice Roose
- Allnex Belgium SA/NV, Anderlechtstraat 33, Drogenbos, 1620 Brussels, Belgium
| | | | - Tatevik Chalyan
- Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT), Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Flanders Make, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Aleksandr Ovsianikov
- 3D Printing and Biofabrication Group, Institute of Materials Science and Technology, TU Wien, 1060 Vienna, Austria
| | - Stefan Baudis
- Institute of Applied Synthetic Chemistry, TU Wien, Getreidemarkt 9/E163-MC, Vienna 1060, Austria
| | - Vera Rogiers
- Department of In Vitro Toxicology and Dermato-Cosmetology (IVTD), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, Jette, 1090 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Tamara Vanhaecke
- Department of In Vitro Toxicology and Dermato-Cosmetology (IVTD), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, Jette, 1090 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Robim M Rodrigues
- Department of In Vitro Toxicology and Dermato-Cosmetology (IVTD), Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Laarbeeklaan 103, Jette, 1090 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Hugo Thienpont
- Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT), Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Flanders Make, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Jürgen Van Erps
- Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT), Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Flanders Make, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Sandra Van Vlierberghe
- Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S4-Bis, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.,Brussels Photonics (B-PHOT), Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Flanders Make, Pleinlaan 2, 1050 Brussels, Belgium
| | - Peter Dubruel
- Polymer Chemistry & Biomaterials Research Group, Centre of Macromolecular Chemistry (CMaC), Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S4-Bis, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
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