Advances in the Development of Granular Microporous Injectable Hydrogels with Non-spherical Microgels and Their Applications in Tissue Regeneration

Abstract

Granular microporous hydrogels are emerging as effective biomaterial scaffolds for tissue engineering due to their improved characteristics compared to traditional nanoporous hydrogels, which better promote cell viability, cell migration, cellular/tissue infiltration, and tissue regeneration. Recent advances have resulted in the development of granular hydrogels made of non-spherical microgels, which compared to those made of spherical microgels have higher macroporosity, more stable mechanical properties, and better ability to guide the alignment and differentiation of cells in anisotropic tissue. The development of these hydrogels as an emerging research area is attracting increasing interest in regenerative medicine. This review first summarizes the fabrication techniques available for non-spherical microgels with different aspect-ratios. Then, it introduces the development of granular microporous hydrogels made of non-spherical microgels, their physicochemical characteristics, and their applications in tissue regeneration. The limitations and future outlook of research on microporous granular hydrogels are also critically discussed.

Keywords: granular hydrogels; microgels; microporous hydrogels; tissue regeneration.