Polymer hydrogels are due to their resemblance to human tissue extraordinarily suitable to serve as medical materials. The ability to specifically tailor them in many ways allows application in many different issues. PEG based hydrogels can be patterned with great ease and are therefore a very appropriate material for the investigation of cell-adhesion and migration. In order to achieve that, hydrogels are patterned via soft-lithographical methods e.g. Micro-Molding in Capillaries (MIMIC) or Nano-Imprint Lithography (NIL). The attained patterns reach from micrometer-dimensions to sub10 nm dimensions which enable a great variety of inducible patterns. By patterning a hydrogel, the surface topography and surface elasticity can be altered specifically. Additionally, the goal is not only modify topography and elasticity of the hydrogels but also functionalize them chemically with biomimetic hydroxyapatite. The introduction of biological inspired hydroxyapatite pursues the idea of precise controlling of mechanical properties and biological performance of the composite hydrogel.

Neffe A.T. et al. Acta Biomater (2011), 7, 1693-1701

“Micro- and Nanofabrication Methods to create patterned PEG Hydrogels for Nano-Biotechnological Applications” at Euro Biomat in Jena, April 2011.

1. Poster Award at the Euro-Biomat in Jena, April 2011

Axel Loebus

Description of work: