Hydrogels based on chitosan in tissue regeneration: How do they work? A mini review

Abstract

The repair of tissue defects after injury is of significant clinical and research importance. A variety of chitosan‐based hydrogels have been investigated and applied to address this problem. By using different synthetic methods, the hydrogels exhibit distinct physical properties, including porosity, adhesion, and stiffness. These properties are considered important factors affecting cell proliferation and tissue regeneration. Meanwhile, drug delivery and cell delivery are the two main strategies to improve the therapeutic effects of chitosan‐based hydrogels, but the choices of cells or drugs are quite varied and largely depend on the specificity of the treated tissues. The present review summarizes the physicochemical properties of chitosan‐based hydrogels and their influences on cells, and lists specific ways to promote the tissue regeneration in different systems of the human body. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2019, 136, 47235.

Functionality of chitosan‐halloysite nanocomposite films for sustained delivery of antibiotics: The effect of chitosan molar mass

“…Protonation promotes rapid CS hydration and subsequent swelling immediately after immersion of the films in swelling medium. LCS‐based films exhibited the most intensive swelling while SR% valued decreased with increasing molar mass of CS which is in accordance with literature findings …”

“…LCS-based films exhibited the most intensive swelling while SR% valued decreased with increasing molar mass of CS which is in accordance with literature findings. 13,46 The composite films also exhibited rapid initial swelling followed by slow mass loss. Similar findings were previously reported for chitosan-montmorillonite composite films.…”

“…Chitosan is a binary linear (amino)polysaccharide copolymer derived from chitin by deacetylation. As a nontoxic, biocompatible and biodegradable (poly)cationic polymer with film forming and gelling properties, chitosan has become one of the most intensively studied biopolymers in the field of drug delivery and tissue engineering . Chitosan films exhibit mucoadhesivity, satisfactory vapor and oxygen barrier properties which make them particularly interesting for wound healing and topical drug delivery.…”

“…As a nontoxic, biocompatible and biodegradable (poly)cationic polymer with film forming and gelling properties, chitosan has become one of the most intensively studied biopolymers in the field of drug delivery and tissue engineering. 12,13 Chitosan films exhibit mucoadhesivity, satisfactory vapor and oxygen barrier properties which make them particularly interesting for wound healing and topical drug delivery. 14,15 However, the use of these films is quite limited due to the poor tensile strength and lack of an efficiently controlled drug release.…”

Hydrogels as artificial matrices for cell seeding in microfluidic devices

“…Elongated cells were observed in gel with stiffness greater than 5 kPa while abnormal circular morphology was seen in the less stiff gel (<5 kPa). 90,91 Chitosan hydrogel has been used as a scaffold to mimic the in vitro cardiac tissue microenvironment. 21 Chitosan (1%) was used to culture cardiomyocytes on microuidic chip.…”