Abstract

The reversible thermosensitive hydroxypropyl chitin (HPCH) has been widely investigated for drug delivery, tissue engineering, wound repair and antibacterial hemostasis. To achieve non-invasive and real-time visualization of in vivo degradation of HPCH, aggregation-induced emission fluorogen (AIEgen) was introduced covalently in HPCH in water to obtain thermosensitive fluorescent hydroxypropyl chitin (FHPCH) avoiding using any organic solvent. The obtained fluorescent FHPCH hydrogel showed strong yellow-green fluorescence feature under UV irradiation, enabling visualization of the hydrogel with reversible thermosensitivity and reliable injectability. The in vitro enzymatic degradation study of FHPCH hydrogel showed that the attenuation of fluorescence intensity well matched with hydrogel weight loss. The injection through a 26-gauge needle for real-time fluorescence imaging in mice indeed indicated that AIE modified injectable thermosensitive FHPCH can be used for non-invasive, continuous and real-time visualization and quantitative analysis of in vivo degradation. This provides a new method for non-invasive real-time monitoring of similar implantable materials.

Talk to us

Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have

Schedule a call

Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.