Development and characterisation of a noval polyethylene-glycol hydrogel

Objective To synthesis a new polyethylene glycol hydrogel with rapid gelation, good mechanical properties, and hemostatic potential. Methods Noval hydrogels were prepared by physically blending the polymers (4-arm-PEG-NH2, 4-arm-PEG-NHS and 4-arm-PEG-CHO) with polyethylene glycol (PEG) in varying ratios (GEL-1:1:1:0; GEL-2:1:0.7:0.3; GEL-3:1:0.5:0.5). The physicochemical properties were evaluated by vial tilting method, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), swelling tests and mechanical testing. In vitro cytotoxicity testing was done using the direct contact method by co-culture with mouse fibroblasts and quantitatively assessed by MTT assay. In vivo evaluation of hemostatic effect was carried out on rabbit liver parenchymal injury model with liver lobe excision. Results The gelling time of the new type of PEG hydrogel was short and adjustable. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) showed that the novel hydrogel based on polyethylene glycol had a honeycomblike porous structure with pores connected and evenly distributed, and the pore size could be controlled. The average swelling ratios of GEL-1, GEL-2 and GEL-3 were 1 540%, 1 620%, and 1 780%, respectively. The mechanical property test showed that the compressive strength of the hydrogel decreased with the increase of the proportion of CHO, but the fracture stress was still 27MPa when the CHO accounted for 0.3. Co-culture with mouse fibroblasts in vitro showed that the new hydrogel had no obvious inhibitory effect on cell growth with low cytotoxicity. The new hydrogels demonstrated excellent hemostatic ability for 3-8 folds reduction in blood loss compared with the control. Conclusion The new hydrogel had a certain clinical application prospect as a hemostatic agent, and its application in the sustained-release drug delivery, tissue engineering and other fields need to be further explored.