POLY 500 |
| Current treatment for corneal blindness involves a full or partial-thickness corneal transplant (keratoplasty) from a cadaver donor. Drawbacks of this technique include the potential for rejection of the donor tissue and development of glaucoma. Biomaterials currently under investigation for use as implants have been constructed from polymers, hydrogels, and collagen sponges. These implants are not yet ideal due to problems with mechanical integrity, optical clarity and biocompatibility. We are investigating hydrogels composed of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (polyHEMA) doped with methacrylic acid as corneal implant materials. In this study, we characterized polyHEMA hydrogels and examined the cell adhesion properties of hydrogels with type I collagen covalently bonded to the surface. The polyHEMA hydrogel formulation was tuned to possess optical properties similar to those of the native cornea: refractive index of 1.42 and percent transmission of 88% at 488 nm. In addition, collagen-modified hydrogels were shown to support cell adhesion and spreading. |
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Scaffolds and Matrices for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Applications
6:00 PM-8:00 PM, Tuesday, August 21, 2007 BCEC -- Exhibit Hall - B2, Poster
Sci-Mix
Division of Polymer Chemistry |