Biocompatible interpenetrating polymeric networks in hydrogel state comprised from jellyfish collagen and polyurethane

The modification of collagen derived from jellyfish to generate hydrogels with high biocompatibility is in recent trend, since this type of collagen does not present allergenic effects or transmission of zoonosis in humans. Therefore, developing novel strategies that allow tailoring their properties for regenerative medicine and biomedical applications is a current research challenge. In this work, the generation of interpenetrating polymeric matrices (IPN) in the hydrogel state composed of jellyfish collagen (C. andromeda) and polyurethane is proposed; for this, dispersions of trifunctional polyurethane prepolymers (TPU) derived from glycerol ethoxylate and hexamethylene diisocyanate (P(HDI)) or isophorone diisocyanate (P(IPDI)) are used as interpenetrating agents for marine collagen chains. The evaluation of the structural modification produced by the chemical structure of the TPU on the properties and the in vitro biocompatibility of the matrices in the hydrogel state is addressed. The results indicate that IPN hydrogels based on P(HDI) show a structure based on microspheric agglomerates with interconnected porosity, while those generated from P(IPDI) exhibit a smooth structure with irregular porosity. The interpenetration of jellyfish collagen with P(HDI) produces an improvement in the storage modulus of 16,972%, enhancing the swelling in acidic, physiological and basic media; as well as delaying proteolytic degradation. Both novel matrices do not present cytotoxic effects for monocytes and fibroblasts, evaluated for up to 48 h of incubation, indicating that they have excellent in vitro biocompatibility, in addition they present enhanced hemocompatility and capacity to inhibit the growth of E. coli; due to this, these matrices in hidrogel state can be applied in strategies for the design of dressings for regenerative medicine applications.