Gels, Volume 8, Issue 2

Tissue engineering is becoming an effective strategy for repairing cartilage damage. Synthesized nanocomposite hydrogels mimic the structure of natural cartilage extracellular matrices (ECMs), are biocompatible, and exhibit nano–bio effects in...

A TiO₂ nanoparticle-loaded polymer fiber web was developed as a functional material with the ability to adsorb and photo-catalytically degrade organic pollutants in aquatic media. A linear copolymer of N-isopropylacrylamide (primary component) and N-...

The aim of the study is to search for a reaction that provides the possibility of tandem “one-pot” formation of polymer networks during radical copolymerization of N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone and glycidyl methacrylate. It was shown that the add...

Due to their combination of featured properties, protein and polysaccharide-based carriers show promising potential in food bioactive ingredient encapsulation, protection, and delivery. The formation of protein–polysaccharide complexes and conj...

This study aims to investigate the effect of new natural photosensitizers (PS) (based on oregano essential oil, curcuma extract, and arnica oil) through in vitro cytotoxicity and biological tests in rat-induced periodontal disease, treated with photo...

Supramolecular gels can be designed such that pre-determined changes in state occur. For example, systems that go from a solution (sol) state to a gel state and then back to a sol state can be prepared using chemical processes to control the onset an...

The present research work was designed to prepare butenafine (BN)-loaded bilosomes (BSs) by the thin-film hydration method. BN is a sparingly water-soluble drug having low permeability and bioavailability. BSs are lipid-based nanovesicles used to ent...

Chitosan (CTS) aerogel is a new type of functional material that could be possibly applied in the thermal insulation field, especially in energy-saving buildings. However, the inhibition method for the very big shrinkage of CTS aerogels from the fina...

As a common industrial by-product, the spend fluid catalytic-cracking (SFCC) catalyst was used to prepare phosphate-based geopolymer for the first time. The structure and property of geopolymer with phosphoric acid concentration ranging from 6 to 14...

The currently available topical formulations of tacrolimus have minimal and variable absorption, elevated mean disposition half-life, and skin irritation effects resulting in patient noncompliance. In our study, we fabricated tacrolimus-loaded solid...

In this approach, tensiometry and UV-visible techniques are used to determine the effect of cationic gemini and conventional surfactants on tetracaine hydrochloride (TCH), an anesthetic drug. We have estimated micellar, interfacial, and energetic con...

Chronic wounds severely affect 1–2% of the population in developed countries. It has been reported that nearly 6.5 million people in the United States suffer from at least one chronic wound in their lifetime. The treatment of chronic wounds is...

Borassus flabellifer L. is a plant in Arecaceae family, widely distributed and cultivated in tropical Asian countries. The purpose of this study was to identify the bioactive compounds of B.flabellifer L. male flower ethanolic extract and investigate...

Aggressive industrial development over the last century involved different heavy metals being used, including high quantities of molybdenum, which need to be treated before discharge in industrial waters. Molybdenum’s market price and industria...

Three-dimensional chitosan-gallic acid complexes were proposed and prepared for the first time by a simple adsorption process of gallic acid (GA) on three-dimensional chitosan structures (3D chitosan). Highly porous 3D devices facilitate a high GA lo...

The combination of nanoparticles (NP) and surfactant has been intensively studied to improve the thermal stability and optimize the performance of foams. This study focuses on the influence of silica NPs with different concentration on the thermal st...

Inert hydrogels are of a great importance in burn first aid. Hydrogel dressings may be an alternative to cooling burn wounds with streaming water, especially in cases of mass casualty events, lack of clean water, hypothermia, or large extent of burns...

Bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offer a promising therapeutic method for cardiac tissue regeneration. However, to monitor the fate of MSCs for tissue repair, a better stem cell delivery carrier is needed. Developing a unique injecta...

Biocompatible hydrogels with antibacterial properties derived from γ-polyglutamic acid (γ-PGA) were prepared from bulk and electrospun nanofibers. The antibacterial drugs loaded in these hydrogels were triclosan (TCS), chlorhexidine (CHX)...

The oral route remains one of the most popular and important routes of administration for drugs—one that warrants the development of advanced drug delivery systems, such as polymeric nanoparticles capable of enhancing the absorption and bioavai...

In recent years, stimuli-responsive hydrogels have gained tremendous interest in designing complex smart 4D materials for applications ranging from biomedicine to soft electronics that can change their properties on demand over time. However, at pres...

Divalent trace metals (TM), especially copper (Cu), cobalt (Co) and zinc (Zn), are recognized as essential microelements for tissue homeostasis and regeneration. To achieve a balance between therapeutic activity and safety of administered TMs, effect...

In the present study, erythromycin (EM)-loaded nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) were prepared by the emulsification and ultra-sonication method. EM-NLCs were optimized by central composite design using the lipid (A), pluronic F127 (B) and sonicat...

Nowadays, hydrogels are found in many applications ranging from the industrial to the biological (e.g., tissue engineering, drug delivery systems, cosmetics, water treatment, and many more). According to the specific needs of individual applications,...

Nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) is widely used to limit the withdrawal symptoms associated with cigarette smoking cessation. However, the available NRT formulations are limited by their short release profiles, requiring frequent administrations al...

Medical applications stimulate the need for materials with broad potential. Chitosan, the partially deacetylated derivative of chitin, offers many interesting characteristics, such as biocompatibility and chemical derivatization possibility. In the p...

In the present study, chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-based honey hydrogel films were developed for potential wound healing application. The hydrogel films were developed by a solvent-casting method and were evaluated in terms of thickness, weight v...

In todays’ world, there is an increasing number of mature oil fields every year, a phenomenon that is leading to the development of more elegant enhanced oil recovery (EOR) technologies that are potentially effective for reservoir profile modif...

This study aimed to determine the effect of the addition of apple juice concentrate (AJC) on the properties of agar gel and dried materials. Agar gels with the addition of apple juice concentrate in the range of 5–20% were prepared with or with...

Hemorrhage, as a common trauma injury and clinical postoperative complication, may cause serious damage to the body, especially for patients with huge blood loss and coagulation dysfunction. Timely and effective hemostasis and avoidance of bleeding a...

(1) Background: When the body is exposed to microwave radiation, the brain is more susceptible to damage than other organs. However, few effective drugs are available for the treatment of microwave-induced brain injury (MIBI) because most drugs are d...

Supramolecular hydrogels based on chitosan and monoaldehydes are biomaterials with high potential for a multitude of bioapplications. This is due to the proper choice of the monoaldehyde that can tune the hydrogel properties for specific practices. I...

Surimi-based products occupy an important position in the aquatic product processing industry. To enhance the quality and flavor of surimi-based products, the effects of pre-emulsified safflower seed oil on the texture, water-holding capacity (WHC),...

The properties and performance of geopolymer at different length scales have been intensively studied, but only limited studies on geopolymer have investigated the zone located between paste and aggregates, which is called the interfacial transition...

The development of biodegradable polysaccharide hydrogel matrices for cytostatic delivery can improve the therapeutic results of patients by prolonging the action of the drug, reducing its toxicity and providing additional biological activity by poly...

The goal of the current study is to develop a chitosan alginate nanoparticle system encapsulating the model drug, simvastatin (SIM-CA-NP) using a novel polyelectrolytic complexation method. The formulation was optimized using the central composite de...

The use of surface relief structures is increasing in the field of optics. A study of photoinduced relief using dichromated gelatin films with different thickness is described in this paper. Two light sources were used: a laser (λ = 468 nm) an...

Macroscopic hydrogel fibers are highly desirable for smart textiles, but the fabrication of self-healable and super-tough covalent/physical double-network hydrogels is rarely reported. Herein, copolymers containing ketone groups were synthesized and...

N,N’-methylenebisacrylamide (BIS) is a very popular cross-linker for the radical polymerisation in water. It is highly reactive but prone to alkaline hydrolysis and suffers from a low solubility. This study shows that with slow polymerising sys...

The three gelators presented in this work (Boc-D-Phe-L-Oxd-OH F0, Boc-D-F₁Phe-L-Oxd-OH F1 and Boc-D-F₂Phe-L-Oxd-OH F2) share the same scaffold and differ in the number of fluorine atoms linked to the aromatic ring of phenylalanine. They have been app...

Approaches for effective and sustained drug delivery to the female reproductive tract (FRT) for treating a range of gynaecological conditions remain limited. The development of versatile delivery platforms, such as soluble gels (sol–gels) coupl...

This study examined the most recent advancements in nanogel production and drug delivery. Phytochemistry is a discipline of chemistry that studies herbal compounds. Herbal substances have aided in the development of innovative remedies for a wide ran...

Simulation studies of aqueous polymer solutions, and heuristic arguments by De Gennes for aqueous polyethylene oxide polymer solutions, have suggested that many-body interactions can give rise to the ‘anomalous’ situation in which the sec...

The world population is growing and alternative ways of satisfying the increasing demand for meat are being explored, such as using animal cells for the fabrication of cultured meat. Edible biomaterials are required as supporting structures. Hence, w...

Considering the current development of new nanostructured and complex materials and gels, it is critical to develop a sub-micro-scale sensitivity tool to quantify experimentally new parameters describing sub-microstructured porous systems. Diffusion...

Mixtures of aqueous solutions of chitosan hydrochloride (CS·HCl, 1–4 wt.%) and Pluronic F-127 (Pl F-127, 25 wt.%) were studied using vibrational and rotational viscometry; the optimal aminopolysaccharide concentration (3 wt.%) and the CS...

Hydrogels that have a capability to provide mechanical modulus matching between time-dynamic curvilinear tissues and bioelectronic devices have been considered tissue-interfacing ionic materials for stably sensing physiological signals and delivering...

In this work, an efficient nanocatalyst was developed based on nanoadsorbent beads. Herein, carboxymethyl cellulose–copper oxide-cobalt oxide nanocomposite beads (CMC/CuO-Co₂O₃) crosslinked by using AlCl₃ were successfully prepared. The beads w...

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative disease characterized by articular cartilage (AC) degradation that affects more than 30 million people in the USA. OA is managed with symptom-alleviating medications. Matrix-assisted autologous chondrocyte transp...

Based on the good self-healing ability to repair mechanical damage, self-healing hydrogels have aroused great interest and been extensively applied as functional materials. However, when partial failure of hydrogels caused by breaking or dryness occu...