Physically crosslinked fibrillar hydrogels formed by hierarchical self-assembly of amphiphilic �-hairpin peptides have been studied in extensive chemical and physical detail.  These hydrogel networks exhibit easy control of mesh size and the unique property of shear thinning and complete rehealing. Such features have rendered these networks as robust structural platforms for therapeutic drug and protein delivery as well as three-dimensional encapsulation and injectable delivery of mammalian cells. Hyaluronic acid is an anionic glycosoaminoglycan, which is an essential ECM component and modulates cellular adhesion, differentiation, signaling and motility in addition to being implicated in wound healing and morphogenesis. We have developed hybrid materials by combining the favorable biological properties of hyaluronic acid with the structurally intriguing properties of our hydrogels. Physical and biological properties of such hybrid networks as a function of different physical mixing methods of peptide hydrogels and hyaluronic acid will be discussed.

Hybrid networks from hyaluronic acid and hierarchically self-assembled β-sheet peptide networks

244th National Meeting (2012)

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