Accelerated wound healing by injectable microporous gel scaffolds assembled from annealed building blocks

Abstract

Summary Injectable hydrogels can provide a scaffold for in situ tissue regrowth and regeneration, however these injected materials require gel degradation prior to tissue reformation limiting their ability to provide physical support. We have created a new class of injectable biomaterial that circumvents this challenge by providing an interconnected microporous network for simultaneous tissue reformation and material degradation. We assemble monodisperse micro-gel building blocks into an interconnected microporous annealed particle (MAP) scaffold. Through microfluidic formation, we tailor the chemical and physical properties of the building blocks, providing downstream control of the physical and chemical properties of the assembled MAP scaffold. In vitro, cells incorporated during MAP scaffold formation proliferated and formed extensive 3D networks within 48 hours. In vivo, the injectable MAP scaffold facilitated cell migration resulting in rapid cutaneous tissue regeneration and tissue structure formation within 5 days. The combination of microporosity and injectability achieved with MAP scaffolds will enable novel routes to tissue regeneration in vivo and tissue creation de novo.