One-step electrogelation of pectin hydrogels as a simpler alternative for antibacterial 3D printing

Abstract

Copper, an essential trace element for human life, can crosslink with biopolymers and participate in multitudinous physiological processes. In this study, the electrophoretic deposition (EPD) technique, as a novel and efficient approach, was applied for the facile and rapid fabrication of citrus peel pectin/copper composite hydrogels. The results demonstrated that a pectin concentration of 0.75% (w/w) and a voltage of 3 V were adequate for the electroformation of hydrogels. The weight of these hydrogels reached 412.9 ± 8.69 and 694.78 ± 11.23 mg at 60 min (CPP-60) and 120 min (CPP-120), respectively, while the thickness of CPP-60 and CPP-120 reached to 1.23 ± 0.11, 2.41 ± 0.20 mm, respectively. Furthermore, the weight and thickness of these hydrogels shared a solid linear relationship with time, providing excellent support for electrogelation in simple 3D printing. As such, three shaped hydrogels were printed successfully by EPD with a CPP concentration of 0.75% (w/w) and voltage of 3 V for 15 min. Especially, the Cu2+ ions release profiles of CPP-60 and CPP-120 were measured by inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), which demonstrated good copper ions release performance and antibacterial activities.