Study of a novel injectable hydrogel of human-like collagen and carboxymethylcellulose for soft tissue augmentation

Abstract

A novel injectable hydrogel was fabricated by human-like collagen (HLC) and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) with 1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide (EDC) and adipic acid dihydrazide (ADH) as cross-linkers. The morphology and structure of the hydrogels were characterized by scanning electron microscope and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results showed that the HLC and CMC were successfully cross-linked through amide bonds and HLC could enhance the pore size of the composite, whereas CMC could be a strong backbone in the hydrogel to keep its appearance. The results of thermogravimetric analysis showed that the thermostability of HLC/CMC was strengthened significantly as compared with that of CMC. The tests of the equilibrium swelling ratio and in vitro degradability indicated that the HLC/CMC hydrogel possesses good water absorbing ability and slow degradability in vitro. Finally, biocompatibility test provided the possibility that HLC/CMC hydrogels are suitable for biomedical applications such as soft tissue augmentation for their good biocompatibility.