Novel Wet Micro-Contact Deprinting Method for Patterning Gold Nanoparticles on PEG-Hydrogels and Thereby Controlling Cell Adhesion

From prevention to diagnosis and treatment: Biomedical applications of metal nanoparticle-hydrogel composites

Recent advances in biomaterials integrate metal nanoparticles with hydrogels to generate composite materials that exhibit new or improved properties. By precisely controlling the composition, arrangement and interactions of their constituents, these hybrid materials facilitate biomedical applications through myriad approaches. In this work we seek to highlight three popular frameworks for designing metal nanoparticle-hydrogel hybrid materials for biomedical applications. In the first approach, the properties of metal nanoparticles are incorporated into a hydrogel matrix such that the composite is selectively responsive to stimuli such as light and magnetic flux, enabling precisely activated therapeutics and self-healing biomaterials. The second approach mediates the dynamic reorganization of metal nanoparticles based on environment-directed changes in hydrogel structure, leading to chemosensing, microbial and viral detection, and drug-delivery capabilities. In the third approach, the hydrogel matrix spatially arranges metal nanoparticles to produce metamaterials or passively enhance nanoparticle properties to generate improved substrates for biomedical applications including tissue engineering and wound healing. This article reviews the construction, properties and biomedical applications of metal nanoparticle-hydrogel composites, with a focus on how they help to prevent, diagnose and treat diseases. Discussion includes how the composites lead to new or improved properties, how current biomedical research leverages these properties and the emerging directions in this growing field.

Micro-Patterning of PEG-Based Hydrogels With Gold Nanoparticles Using a Reactive Micro-Contact-Printing Approach

In this work a novel, relatively simple, and fast method for patterning of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) on poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogels is presented. In the hereby exploited reactive micro-contact printing (reactive-μ-CP) process, the surface of a micro-relief patterned PDMS-stamp is first functionalized with an amino-silane self-assembled monolayer (SAM), which is then inked with Au NPs. The stamp is subsequently brought into conformal contact with thiol-functionalized PEG-based hydrogel films. Due to the strong gold-thiol interactions the Au NPs are adequately and easily transferred onto the surfaces of these soft, multifunctional PEG hydrogels. In this way, defined μ-patterns of Au NPs on PEG hydrogels are achieved. These Au NPs patterns allow specific biomolecular interactions on PEG surfaces, and cell adhesion has been studied. Cells were found to effectively adhere only on Au NPs micro-patterns and to avoid the anti-adhesive PEG background. Besides the cell adhesion studies, these Au NPs μ-patterns can be potentially applied as biosensors in plasmon-based spectroscopic devices or in medicine, e.g., for drug delivery systems or photothermal therapies.

Micropatterning of Au NPs on PEG Hydrogels Using Different Silanes To Control Cell Adhesion on the Nanocomposites

Amino-silanization of silica-based substrates has proven to be effective in guiding the immobilization of citrate-stabilized Au NPs in a good, homogeneous fashion. This accomplishment has formed the basis of fabricating micropatterns of Au NPs on such substrates by patterning of oxidized silicon wafers with (3-aminopropyl)trimethoxysilane (amino-silane) using the microcontact printing (μCP) process. This micropattern of amino-silane is used to specifically adsorb Au NPs. To avoid unspecific adsorption to the nonsilanized areas on the silicon wafers, the nonstamped areas were backfilled with self-assembled monolayers of organosilanes, for example, with methyl- or perfluoro-end-groups. Finally, after having fabricated a micropattern of Au NPs on silicon wafers, the Au NP patterns were transferred onto poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels by our newly developed procedures, and on these nanocomposite materials, controlled cell adhesion has been achieved. Furthermore, these materials are great candidates for plasmon-based biosensor applications and also for various medical applications, such as for drug delivery systems or photothermal therapies.

Nano-Contact Transfer with Gold Nanoparticles on PEG Hydrogels and Using Wrinkled PDMS-Stamps

In the present work, a soft lithographic process is used to create nanometer-sized line patterns of gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) on PEG-based hydrogels. Hereby nanometer-sized wrinkles on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) are first fabricated, then functionalized with amino-silane and subsequently coated with Au NPs. The Au NPs are electrostatically bound to the surface of the wrinkled PDMS. In the next step, these relatively loosely bound Au NPs are transferred to PEG based hydrogels by simple contacting, which we denote "nano-contact transfer". Nano-patterned Au NPs lines on PEG hydrogels are thus achieved, which are of interesting potential in nano-photonics, biosensor applications (using SERS) and to control nanoscopic cell adhesion events.