Self-healing dynamic hydrogels for biomedical applications

Lab-based models of human tissues are an important tool for studying and developing treatments for conditions such as heart disease, osteoarthritis, and cancer. In this project, we will combine our expertise in organic chemistry, supramolecular science, and chemical biology to develop new hydrogels that can act as scaffolds for the growth of these models.

Specifically, we will make use of dynamic covalent reactions being developed in the Spicer group, optimising these first on small molecules, then applying them to peptides and polymers, to ultimately create gels capable of self-healing over a variety of timeframes, that mimic the properties of natural tissues. These dynamic hydrogels will constitute a powerful and tunable platform for scaffolding the growth of multiple cell and tissue types in the future, and enabling the control of tissue growth as a result of their dynamic programming.

Objectives: i) Develop new dynamic covalent linkages with tunable equilibria ii) Synthesise and characterise hydrogels which can undergo self-healing processes across various timeframes iii) Demonstrate the ability of these hydrogels to support and direct the growth of human stem cells