American researchers synthesize a hydrogel polymer for articular cartilage repair

Researchers from the United States have recently developed a new polymer material that can help repair damaged articular cartilage and is expected to bring good news to patients with osteoarthritis.

There is a macromolecular substance called glycosaminoglycan in articular cartilage that binds to water molecules and helps the joints to bear loads and resist wear. In patients with osteoarthritis, the glycosaminoglycan content in the cartilage is reduced, and the articular cartilage is under load, so the patient often feels pain.

Researchers from Boston University in the United States have tried to repair damaged articular cartilage with synthetic polymeric materials. They chose two hydrophilic monomers with good hydrophilicity and soaked the articular cartilage in a solution containing both monomers and a photoinitiator. After a period of time, the polymer monomer and photoinitiator penetrate into the cartilage. They then illuminate the cartilage with light of a specific wavelength such that the photoinitiator initiates the polymerization of the two monomers to form a highly water-absorbent polymer network, commonly known as a hydrogel. This hydrogel is interspersed with the original glycosaminoglycan network and supports the latter. In vitro experiments have shown that after this treatment, the resistance to load and abrasion resistance of damaged articular cartilage returns to the level of healthy articular cartilage, indicating that this new material can indeed play a role in cartilage that has undergone degenerative disease. Enhancement.

Left: There is a large amount of glycosaminoglycan in normal articular cartilage, which resists external load by combining water molecules; middle: degenerative lesions of articular cartilage in patients with osteoarthritis, decreased glycosaminoglycan content; right: by adding synthetic Polymer material, the performance of articular cartilage that has sent degenerative lesions can be restored (picture cited from original report)

The current study is limited to in vitro experiments, and if it is actually used in the clinic, researchers still need to solve many problems. For example, researchers currently use green light to cause polymerization, but green light has poor penetrating ability to tissue cells, so researchers need to further improve this material system.

Original search

"Light-activated hydrogel might one day repair degraded cartilage in arthritic joints"

"A Tissue-Penetrating Double Network Restores the Mechanical Properties of Degenerated Articular Cartilage"