Supramolecular Compartmentalized Hydrogels via Polydopamine Particle-Stabilized Water-in-Water Emulsions.

Jianrui Zhang,Bernhard V. K. J. Schmidt,Baris Kumru

doi:10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b01101

Abstract

Compartmentalized hydrogels constitute a significant research area, for example, for catalytic and biomedical applications. As presented here, a generic method is used for compartmentalization of supramolecular hydrogels by using water-in-water emulsions based on aqueous two-phase systems. By forming the supramolecular hydrogel throughout the continuous phase of all-aqueous emulsions, distinct, microcompartmentalized materials were created. The basis for the presented compartmentalized water-in-water hydrogels is polydopamine particle-stabilized water-in-water emulsions from dextran and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). Addition of α-cyclodextrin (α-CD) led to supramolecular complexation with PEG and subsequent hydrogel formation showing no signs of creaming. Due to the supramolecular nature of the compartmentalized hydrogels, selective network cleavage could be induced via competing guest addition, while keeping the emulsion substructure intact.

Highlights

Compartmentalization contributes an important role in a variety of biological and industrial processes.[1]
A generic method is used for compartmentalization of supramolecular hydrogels by using waterin-water emulsions based on aqueous two-phase systems
Compartmentalized hydrogels were prepared via gelation of w/w emulsions stabilized by Polydopamine particles (PDP) (0.2 g/L) containing various weight ratios of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and dextran as well as different molecular weights of PEG and different concentrations of α-CD

Summary

Introduction

Compartmentalization contributes an important role in a variety of biological and industrial processes.[1]. The natural concept of compartmentalization has become a significant research topic in polymer and colloid science, e.g., in the endeavor for synthetic cells.[3,4] compartmentalization is crucial for encapsulation, drug delivery, and release of active flavor ingredients, as well as for structuring different materials through templating and scaffolding.[5,6] For synthetic processes, compartmentalization is generally achieved either by emulsification of immiscible phases or through encapsulation of soft matter inside of vesicles.[7−9] there are some limitations in the common approaches. There is a need for a simple and elegant approach that allows the formation of microcompartments containing polar molecules without introducing any barriers

Methods

Results

Conclusion