Nanoparticles embedded semi-interpenetrating (semi-IPNs) polymeric hydrogels with enhanced mechanical toughness and biocompatibility could have splendid biomedical acceptance. Here we propose poly(methacrylic acid) grafted polysaccharide based semi-IPNs filled with nanoclay via in situ Michael type reaction associated with covalent crosslinking with N,N-methylenebisacrylamide (MBA). The effect of nanoclay in the semi-IPN hydrogel has been investigated which showed significant improvement of mechanical robustness. Meanwhile, the hydrogels showed reversible ductility up to 70% in response to cyclic loading-unloading cycle which is an obvious phenomenon of rubber-like elasticity. The synthesized semi-IPN hydrogel show biodegradability and non-cytotoxic nature against human cells. The live-dead assay showed that the prepared hydrogel is a viable platform for cell growth without causing severe cell death. The in vitro drug release study in psychological pH (pH = 7.4) reveals that the controlled drug release phenomena can be tuned by simulating the environment pH. Such features in a single hydrogel assembly can propose this as high performance; biodegradable and non-cytotoxic 3D scaffold based promising biomaterial for tissue engineering.
Keywords: In vitro drug release; Live-dead assay; Non-cytotoxic; Rubber-like elasticity; Semi-IPNs.
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