Nonswellable Injectable Hydrogels Self-Assembled Through Non-Covalent Interactions

Injectable hydrogels have gained interest as drug delivery systems for the controlled release of drugs at specific locations. A simple strategy to obtain versatile supramolecular hydrogels has been developed, yielding transparent, self-standing, nonswellable, biocompatible, biodegradable, shear-thinning and self-healing hydrogels. The gelification process occurs within seconds through ionic interactions between inorganic nanodiscs, an organic polymer and phosphate buffer solution. This strategy enables the inclusion of virtually any water-soluble moiety, because there is no addition of organic solvents, metal catalysts, radical initiators or ultraviolet radiation. The new hydrogels present a shear storage modulus up to G'- 1.3x10(4) Pa, one of the largest among those reported for non-covalent hydrogels. The nonswelling and shear-thinning behavior are crucial properties to the application of these new materials as injectable hydrogels.