Functional Hydrogel for Biomedical Applications: Progress, Challenges, and Opportunities
A special issue of Materials (ISSN 1996-1944). This special issue belongs to the section "Biomaterials".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 December 2025 | Viewed by 633
Special Issue Editor
Interests: hydrogel microsphere; hydrogel carrier; ROS sensitive hydrogel; supramolecular hydrogel; nerve tissue engineering; vascular tissue engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
As an important soft material, hydrogels consist of three-dimensional networks with a certain amount of water. Functional hydrogels are engineered materials with specific properties that are suitable for a range of applications. In recent years, significant progress has been made in the field of functional hydrogels. A large number of novel hydrogels have been developed with multiple functions, such as nano/microgels for cell growth and proliferation, hydrogel bioelectronics as biosensors and bio-actuators, thermal/photo/strain-sensitivity for smart drug release and self-healing and injectability for tissue repair and regeneration. This Special Issue focuses on the research progress, challenges and opportunities with respect to functional hydrogels from both fundamental and application aspects. The increasing interest in functional hydrogels may be due to their design and preparation, which often aims to obtain new functions or to improve the quality of existing functions. The raw materials of these hydrogels can be natural or synthetic polymers. To understand the functions of these hydrogels, a structure–property relationship can also be included.
In this Special Issue, original research articles focusing on new synthesis, innovative functionalization, theoretical models of the functional hydrogels and reviews are welcome.
Dr. Lin Ye
Guest Editor
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Keywords
- nano/micro hydrogel sphere
- conductive hydrogel for nerve tissue engineering
- sensitive hydrogels such as thermal, pH and ROS responsive hydrogels
- self-healing hydrogels
- tough and strong hydrogels for hard tissue repair and regeneration
- hydrogel sensors and hydrogel actuators for medical applications
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