Synthesis, rheology, cytotoxicity and antibacterial studies of N-acrolylglycine-acrylamide copolymer soft nano hydrogel

Anilkumar Yamala; Jai Shree Kurba; D. Sanjeev Kumar; Ravi Kumar Kanaparthi; Ashok K. Madikonda

doi:10.1515/polyeng-2023-0247

Abstract

Hydrogels possess excellent biological properties that make them ideal for biomedical applications. They are compatible with living cells and tissues because they can swell in the presence of water. In this study, we investigated the stability and biocompatibility of hydrogels. We synthesized and characterized N-acryl glycine (NAG) monomer and then synthesized its copolymer using the miniemulsion-polymerization technique, a soft-hydrogel method. To confirm the morphological properties of the dried hydrogel particles, we used the field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) technique. We also investigated the rheological properties of the hydrogels for different concentrations to evaluate their mechanical strength and gel-like properties. Our findings indicated that the 10 % gel had superior strength and yield strain at all examined temperatures (30 °C, 37 °C, and 40 °C) compared to other concentrated gels. We systematically evaluated the biocompatibility of the hydrogel using three different cell lines: HEK 293T, RAW 264.7, and HeLa. Our cell line studies demonstrated that hydrogels are viable when exposed to a concentration of 0.5 mg/mL. Moreover, cell proliferation was observed at concentrations below 0.25 mg/mL. The MTT assay and rheology results suggest that hydrogel characteristics are more suitable for various biomedical applications, such as drug delivery and tissue engineering.

Keywords: hydrogel; miniemulsion polymerization; biopolymer; biomedical applications; soft gel; biocompatibility

Corresponding author: Anilkumar Yamala, School of Engineering Science and Technology, University of Hyderabad, Prof. CR Rao Road, 500046, Hyderabad, Telangana, India, E-mail: dr.anilkumaryamala@gmail.com

Funding source: Central University of Kerala

Award Identifier / Grant number: university grant commission

Funding source: University of Hyderabad

Award Identifier / Grant number: university grant commission

Acknowledgments

The support received from University of Hyderabad and Central University of Kerala for consumables and infrastructure is gratefully acknowledged.

Research ethics: Not applicable.
Author contributions: The authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission. Anilkumar Yamala: conceptualisation, experimental work, writing – review & editing. Jai Shree K: rheological experimental work and data analysis. D. Sanjeev Kumar: review & editing. Ravi Kumar Kanaparthi: resources for chemical synthesis work, review & editing. Ashok Kumar Madikonda: antibacterial experimental work, writing – review.
Competing interests: The authors state no conflict of interest.
Research funding: None declared.
Data availability: Not applicable.

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Supplementary Material

This article contains supplementary material (https://doi.org/10.1515/polyeng-2023-0247).

Received: 2023-11-03

Accepted: 2024-06-25

Published Online: 2024-09-16

Published in Print: 2024-10-28

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