Fiber-reinforced colloidal gels as injectable and moldable biomaterials for regenerative medicine.
Hydrogels are the preferred material choice for various strategies in regenerative medicine. Nevertheless, due to their high water content and soft nature, these materials are often mechanically weak, which limits their applicability. This study demonstrates mechanical reinforcement of colloidal gels at microscale using discrete polyester fibers, as confirmed by rheological, compression and nanoindentation tests. This reinforcement strategy results in injectable and moldable colloidal gels with improved mechanical performance. The fully organic gels presented here are cytocompatible and can maintain their mechanical integrity under physiological conditions. Consequently, these gels exhibit a strong potential for applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
['Diba|Mani|M|', 'Polini|Alessandro|A|', 'Petre|Daniela Geta|DG|', 'Zhang|Yang|Y|', 'Leeuwenburgh|Sander C G|SCG|']
D000818:Animals D001672:Biocompatible Materials D019245:Compressive Strength D055119:Elastic Modulus D005347:Fibroblasts D005780:Gelatin D020100:Hydrogels D051379:Mice D041681:NIH 3T3 Cells D053758:Nanoparticles D011091:Polyesters D044968:Regenerative Medicine D012212:Rheology
Colloidal gel Regenerative medicine Fiber reinforcement Injectable gel Moldable gel Self-healing