Super-soft hydrogel particles with tunable elasticity in a microfluidic blood capillary model

Adv Mater. 2014 Nov 19;26(43):7295-9. doi: 10.1002/adma.201402753. Epub 2014 Sep 10.

Abstract

Super-soft PEG hydrogel particles with tunable elasticity are prepared via a mesoporous silica templating method. The deformability behavior of these particles, in a microfluidic blood-capillary model, can be tailored to be similar to that of human red blood cells. These results provide a new platform for the design and development of soft hydrogel particles for investigating bio-nano interactions.

Keywords: PEG hydrogel particles; atomic force microscopy; elasticity; mesoporous silica particles; microfluidic model.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Biomimetic Materials / chemistry*
  • Capillaries / physiology
  • Computer Simulation
  • Elastic Modulus
  • Elasticity*
  • Erythrocytes / physiology
  • Finite Element Analysis
  • Humans
  • Hydrogels / chemistry*
  • Microfluidics / methods
  • Microscopy, Atomic Force
  • Microscopy, Electron, Scanning
  • Microscopy, Electron, Transmission
  • Microscopy, Fluorescence
  • Models, Biological
  • Polyethylene Glycols / chemistry*
  • Solutions
  • Water / chemistry

Substances

  • Hydrogels
  • Solutions
  • Water
  • Polyethylene Glycols