Synthesis of polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane nano-crosslinked poly(ethylene glycol)-based hybrid hydrogels for drug delivery and antibacterial activity

The synthesis is reported of novel hybrid hydrogels based on ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid dianhydride and poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) with octa-aminopropyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane hydrochloride salt (OA-POSS) as a nano-crosslinker under solvent-free conditions. The molecular weight of PEG was varied between 600 and 1000 Da. The synthesized hydrogels were characterized using various techniques. Further, the swelling behavior and antibacterial activity of the hydrogels and release kinetics of metronidazole (MTZ) as a model drug from them were evaluated. Experimental results demonstrate that hydrogels with tunable properties can be synthesized by varying the PEG molecular weight and type of crosslinker (hybrid or organic). Among the synthesized hybrid hydrogels, that crosslinked by OA-POSS with long PEG chains (1000 Da) showed the highest swelling degree (2000%), drug encapsulation efficiency (88%) and extent of MTZ release (96%). (c) 2018 Society of Chemical Industry