Hydrolytic and enzymatic degradations of physically crosslinked hydrogels prepared from PLA/PEO/PLA triblock copolymers

Degradable copolymers were synthesized by ring opening polymerization of lactide in the presence of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), using CaH2 as a biocompatible initiator. The resulting PLA/PEO/PLA triblock copolymers were dissolved in a biocompatible solvent, namely tetraglycol. Physically crosslinked hydrogels were then prepared by introducing small amounts of water into the thus obtained solutions. Hydrolytic degradation of the highly swollen hydrogels was realized in 0.13 M pH=7.4 phosphate buffer, while the enzymatic degradation was carried out in 0.05 M pH=8.6 Tris buffer containing a PLA-degrading enzyme, proteinase K. In both cases, degradation was initially very fast with dramatic weight loss. The LA/EO ratio of the remaining material increased rapidly, in agreement with the release of PEO-rich segments. In a second phase, the degradation rate slowed down. The presence of proteinase K strongly accelerated the degradation rate of the hydrogels, indicating that the enzyme was able to penetrate inside and attack the PLA domains which constituted nanometric nodes in the gel network. (C) 2002 Kluwer Academic Publishers.