Advanced Materials, Vol.19, No.18, 2503-2503, 2007
Dynamically restructuring hydrogel networks formed with reversible covalent crosslinks
Dynamically restructuring hydrogel networks are formed from two water-soluble polymers by functionalization with phenylboronic acid (PBA) and salicylhydroxamic acid (SHA) moieties that interact through pH-sensitive and reversible covalent crosslinks (see figure). The networks can be tuned to display a wide range of pH-responsive properties, which can potentially be exploited for drug delivery systems in biological environments where similar acidic changes occur.