Electroactive biocompatible hydrogel structures
AssigneeNorthwestern University
InventorsJonathan Rivnay, Anthony J. Petty, Cheng Sun, Henry Oliver T. Ware
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Abstract
Biocompatible polymer hydrogel composite structures, methods of making the composite structures, and methods of using the composite structures as scaffolds for biological tissue growth and regeneration are provided. The methods for making the composite structures start with a porous high resolution three-dimensional hydrogel scaffold in which polymer precursors are infused and then polymerized in situ to form a water-soluble, electrically conducting polymer that is bonded to and/or entrapped within the hydrogel.
Claims20
A method of making a polymer hydrogel composite structure, the method comprising:
- forming a porous three-dimensional scaffold comprising a hydrogel and having a minimum feature size of 100 μm or smaller;
- functionalizing surfaces of the porous three-dimensional scaffold with pendant polymerizable groups;
- infusing the scaffold with a water-soluble, electrically conducting, biocompatible polymer precursor;
- and
- polymerizing the polymer precursor to form a water-soluble, electrically conducting, biocompatible polymer that infiltrates the porous, three-dimensional scaffold, wherein the pendant polymerizable groups are polymerized into the backbone of the water-soluble, electrically conducting, biocompatible polymer during the polymerization of the polymer precursors.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.