Studies of a Biocompatible Maleimide-Modified Dextran and Hyaluronic Acid Hydrogel System

This article discussed a novel hydrogel, which was created through Michael addition. Twom precursors Dextran functionalized Maleimide groups (Dex-Mal) and Hyaluronic Acid functionalized thiol groups (HA-SH) were designed, prepared, and characterized by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR). The formed hydrogels were investigated by gelation time, swelling studies, viscoelastic properties, and degradation rate. Based on gelation time observation, we detected that the hydrogel gelation time could be varied with a diffident weight percentage of precursors. Based on previous research, we measured that 2% Dex-Mal and 2% HA-SH is the optimal formular for the biomedical application and this formular was also investigated by other studies. The swelling study indicated hydrogel has good flexibility and the degradation test indicated hydrogel is biodegradable. The viscoelastic test indicated hydrogel is an elastic solid. From these studies, this novel hydrogel could be potential for biomedical applications.