In this work, synthesis and investigations on chitosan-based hydrogels modified with Aloe vera juice are presented. These materials were synthesized by UV radiation. Investigations involved analysis of chemical structure by FTIR spectroscopy, sorption properties in physiological liquids, strength properties by texture analyzer, surface topography by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM technique), and in vitro cytotoxicity by MTT test using L929 murine fibroblasts. Particular attention was focused both on determining the impact of the amount and the molecular weight of the crosslinker used for the synthesis as well as on the introduced additive on the properties of hydrogels. It was proven that modified hydrogels exhibited higher swelling ability. Introduced additive affected the tensile strength of hydrogels—modified materials showed 23% higher elongation. The greater amount of the crosslinker used in the synthesis, the more compact the structure, leading to the lower elasticity and lower sorption of hydrogels was reported. Above 95%, murine fibroblasts remained viable after 24 h incubation with hydrogels. It indicates that tested materials did not exhibit cytotoxicity toward these lines. Additionally, materials with Aloe vera juice were characterized by lower surface roughness. Conducted investigations allowed us to state that such modified hydrogels may be considered as useful for biomedical purposes.

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Regenerative medicine is becoming a rapidly evolving technique in today’s biomedical progress scenario. Scientists around the world suggest the use of naturally synthesized biomaterials to repair and heal damaged cells. Hydroxyapatite (HAp) has the potential to replace drugs in biomedical engineering and regenerative drugs. HAp is easily biodegradable, biocompatible, and correlated with macromolecules, which facilitates their incorporation into inorganic materials. This review article provides extensive knowledge on HAp and collagen-containing compositions modified with drugs, bioactive components, metals, and selected nanoparticles. Such compositions consisting of HAp and collagen modified with various additives are used in a variety of biomedical applications such as bone tissue engineering, vascular transplantation, cartilage, and other implantable biomedical devices.

Hydrogels belong to the group of materials with growing interest on the market of polymers. In this article, hydrogels based on Beetosan were obtained using ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Main component of hydrogel matrix-Beetosan-is chitosan obtained from naturally died honeybees. Such hydrogels were modified with active substances, that is, caffeine, bee pollen, Salvia officinalis (sage), and Aloe vera juice. Next, the analysis of cytotoxicity of hydrogels in relation to murine fibroblasts by 3-[4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl]-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide and neutral red uptake assays were conducted. Furthermore, surface morphology, tensile strength, geometry, and roughness of hydrogels were characterized. Hydrogels did not show cytotoxicity to recommended L929 murine fibroblasts. These polymers did not affect adversely the growth and viability of these cells.Moreover, Beetosan hydrogels were characterized by flexibility as well as by diversified surface morphology that could indicate their high absorbency. Therefore these materials may be considered as useful for biomedical purposes with special emphasis on application as modern wound dressings that not only absorb wound exudate but also contain natural substances with therapeutic properties that is beneficial from the point of view of wound healing process. K E Y W O R D S AFM analysis, chitosan hydrogels, cytotoxicity assays, tensile strength, wound dressings 1 | INTRODUCTION Recently, rapid development of medical sciences is observed. Scientists conduct studies on the development of new, more effective methods of treatment. Particular attention is currently directed to the desmurgy. It is an area of medicine that deals with preparation, modification, and functions of dressings. Modern wound dressings are modified with different antimicrobial agents to accelerate wound

The aspect of drug delivery is significant in many biomedical subareas including tissue engineering. Many studies are being performed to develop composites with application potential for bone tissue regeneration which at the same provide adequate conditions for osteointegration and deliver the active substance conducive to the healing process. Hydroxyapatite shows a great potential in this field due to its osteoinductive and osteoconductive properties. In the paper, hydroxyapatite synthesis via the wet precipitation method and its further use as a ceramic phase of polymer–ceramic composites based on PVP/PVA have been presented. Firstly, the sedimentation rate of hydroxyapatite in PVP solutions has been determined, which allowed us to select a 15% PVP solution (sedimentation rate was 0.0292 mm/min) as adequate for preparation of homogenous reaction mixture treated subsequently with UV radiation. Both FT-IR spectroscopy and EDS analysis allowed us to confirm the presence of both polymer and ceramic phase in composites. Materials containing hydroxyapatite showed corrugated and well-developed surface. Composites exhibited swelling properties (hydroxyapatite reduced this property by 25%) in simulated physiological fluids, which make them useful in drug delivery (swelling proceeds parallel to the drug release). The short synthesis time, possibility of preparation of composites with desired shapes and sizes and determined physicochemical properties make the composites very promising for biomedical purposes.