Volume 111, Issue 3 p. 441-453
Perspective

Nanocomposite hydrogels for biomedical applications

Akhilesh K. Gaharwar

Akhilesh K. Gaharwar

Department of Biomedical Engineering, Texas A & M University, College Station, Texas, 77843

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Nicholas A. Peppas

Corresponding Author

Nicholas A. Peppas

Departments of Chemical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering and Pharmacy, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas, 78712

Correspondence to: A. Khademhosseini and N.A. PeppasSearch for more papers by this author
Ali Khademhosseini

Corresponding Author

Ali Khademhosseini

Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

Department of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Engineering, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139

Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139

Correspondence to: A. Khademhosseini and N.A. PeppasSearch for more papers by this author
First published: 22 November 2013
Citations: 896

ABSTRACT

Hydrogels mimic native tissue microenvironment due to their porous and hydrated molecular structure. An emerging approach to reinforce polymeric hydrogels and to include multiple functionalities focuses on incorporating nanoparticles within the hydrogel network. A wide range of nanoparticles, such as carbon-based, polymeric, ceramic, and metallic nanomaterials can be integrated within the hydrogel networks to obtain nanocomposites with superior properties and tailored functionality. Nanocomposite hydrogels can be engineered to possess superior physical, chemical, electrical, and biological properties. This review focuses on the most recent developments in the field of nanocomposite hydrogels with emphasis on biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. In particular, we discuss synthesis and fabrication of nanocomposite hydrogels, examine their current limitations and conclude with future directions in designing more advanced nanocomposite hydrogels for biomedical and biotechnological applications. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2014;111: 441–453. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.