Engineering Commons^™

PdmsStar-Peg Hydrogels Prepared Via Solvent-Induced Phase Separation (Sips) And Their Potential Utility As Tissue Engineering Scaffolds, B. M. Bailey, R. Fei, Dany J. Munoz Pinto, M. S. Hahn, M. A. Grunlan

Engineering Faculty Research

Inorganic-organic hydrogels based on methacrylated star polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS_star-MA) and diacrylated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG-DA) macromers were prepared via solvent-induced phase separation (SIPS). The macromers were combined in a dichloromethane precursor solution and sequentially photopolymerized, dried and hydrated. The chemical and physical properties of the hydrogels were further tailored by varying the number average molecular weight (M_n) of PEG-DA (M_n = 3.4k and 6k g mol^-1) as well as the weight percent ratio of PDMS_star-MA (M_n = 7k g mol^-1) to PEG-DA from 0:100 to 20:80. Compared to analogous hydrogels …

Study On The Interactions Between Nanomaterials And Proteins, Yueqi Bi

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Incorporating proteins with nanomaterials is an effective way to enhance the stability and function of proteins. The protein-nanomaterials hybrid systems have been extensively applied in drug delivery and biocatalysis. This thesis focuses on the different interactions between proteins and nanomaterials. Three sub-projects have been studied as follows;

1) Chemical interaction: Gold nanoparticles with a particle size of 15nm were applied to label bovine serum albumin (BSA), a globular protein, for realizing a colorimetric protein assay. The results of FTIR and Raman spectra indicate that gold nanoparticles bond to BSA via the amine bonds. The surface plasma resonance (SPR) of …

Poly(Vinyl Alcohol) Nanocomposite Hydrogels For Intervertebral Disc Prostheses, Elaine Wong

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Spinal fusion is currently the gold standard for surgical intervention of intervertebral disc (IVD) diseases leading to neck and back pain failing conservative treatments. However, fusion removes motion between the vertebrae and can result in adjacent level degeneration. Total disc replacement (TDR) is an emerging treatment alternative that preserves motion, but materials found in clinically available devices bear little resemblance to the properties of the native IVD. Poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) hydrogels are biocompatible, have mechanical behaviour similar to natural tissues, and properties that can be tuned by varying polymer concentration and physical crosslinking through freeze-thaw cycling. Furthermore, their properties can …

Engineering Single-Molecule, Nanoscale, And Microscale Bio-Functional Materials Via Click Chemistry, Michael Daniele

All Dissertations

To expand the design envelope and supplement the materials library available to biomaterials scientists, the copper(I)-catalyzed azide-alkyne cycloaddition (CuCAAC) was explored as a route to design, synthesize and characterize bio-functional small-molecules, nanoparticles, and microfibers. In each engineered system, the use of click chemistry provided facile, bio-orthogonal control for materials synthesis; moreover, the results provided a methodology and more complete, fundamental understanding of the use of click chemistry as a tool for the synergy of biotechnology, polymer and materials science. Fluorophores with well-defined photophysical characteristics (ranging from UV to NIR fluorescence) were used as building blocks for small-molecule, fluorescent biosensors. Fluorophores …

Enzyme Actuated Bioresponsive Hydrogels, Andrew Wilson

All Theses

Bioresponsive hydrogels are emerging with technological significance in targeted drug delivery, biosensors and regenerative medicine. Conferred with the ability to respond to specific biologically derived stimuli, the design challenge is in effectively linking the conferred biospecificity with an engineered response tailored to the needs of a particular application. Moreover, the fundamental phenomena governing the response must support an appropriate dynamic range and limit of detection. The design of these systems is inherently complicated due to the high interdependency of the governing phenomena that guide the sensing, transduction, and the actuation response of hydrogels. To investigate the dynamics of these materials, …

Actuating Individual Electrospun Hydrogel Nanofibres, Adrian Gestos, Philip G. Whitten, Gordon G. Wallace, Geoffrey Maxwell Spinks

Australian Institute for Innovative Materials - Papers

The actuation of a single hydrogel nanofibre is measured for the first time by AFM. The actuation stress generated was comparable to that produced by skeletal muscle and the actuation rate was significantly increased by the nanoscale dimensions of the fibre.

Mechanical Analysis Of Bacterial Nanocellulose For Biomedical Applications, Joseph Mathias Schwertz

All ETDs from UAB

Bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) is a biopolymer that has been used in a variety of applications ranging from speaker diaphragms to biomedical products. Created by micro-organisms like Gluconacetobacter xylinus, BNC is composed of long cellulose fibers in a highly crystalline hydrogel. Recent interest in BNC based materials has led to the discov-ery of several cultivation and post-processing treatments that have enabled researchers to control the mechanical and structural properties of the hydrogel. Three BNC treatments were mechanically evaluated through tensile testing. Ten-sile tests were conducted using dogbone shape test strips and a video extensometer. Phys-ical compression of a BNC hydrogels not …