Superparamagnetic freeze-thawed PVA hydrogel for applications in tissue engineering, drug delivery and bioimaging

Abstract

The prerequisite of super-paramagnetic materials in biomedical applications necessitate the optimum magnetic saturation and negligible cytotoxic characteristics. Especially, the development of super-paramagnetic hydrogels in tissue engineering has been rather a scarce documentation. In this context, the present study aims to integrate Fe2+/3+ in PVA hydrogels through repetitive freeze-thawing technique followed by lyophilisation. A detailed physiochemical characterization of the developed hydrogels has been evaluated using X-ray diffraction, TGA, Raman and XPS techniques. The binding of iron with PVA has been confirmed through FTIR analysis and magnetic measurements at room temperature ensured the super-paramagnetic nature of obtained hydrogels. The release profiles of gentamycin drug loaded PVA hydrogel showcased an 8% release in 12 h and this profile followed the non- Fickian diffusion process. The maximum tensile and compression strength of hydrogels are respectively determined as 3.2 and 4.6 MPa. The presence of Fe in the hydrogel deliberated T2 MRI imaging characteristics. In vitro test results affirmed the cell viability of more than 60% for all the hydrogels. The overall findings from the study signified the applications of FePVA hydrogels in tissue engineering applications.