Bioactive and smart hydrogel surfaces

Abstract

Recently, hydrogels have become popular in material research for biomedical applications, such as tissue engineering. In nature, tissues are formed by cells that are surrounded by the extracellular matrix (ECM). One of its components is the elastin. Such proteins can be used to create new polymers known as elastin-like recombinamers (ELRs), which can be utilized to create hydrogels. These bioinspired materials not only mimic the native ECM but also improve their natural properties, making them bioactive and sensitive to their environment. Herein, we review hydrogels as three-dimensional scaffolds focusing on ELRs and their potential as materials for different applications in the biomedical field.