Effect of Amino Acid Types on the Mechanical and Antimicrobial Properties of Amino Acid‐Based Polyionic Liquid Hydrogels

• Published in: Macromolecular rapid communications. 2024-05, Vol.45 (9), p.e2300689-n/a
• Main Authors: Fan, Jingying, He, Xiaoling, Zhou, Xuanping, Li, Saisai, Yang, Yuqing
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acrylic acid; Aluminum; amino acid; Amino acids; Antifungal activity; Antiinfectives and antibacterials; antimicrobial property; Aspartic acid; Cellulose; Choline; Copolymerization; Crosslinking; E coli; Fungi; Fungicides; Hydrogels; Ionic liquids; Mechanical properties; Medical dressings; Modulus of elasticity; Phenylalanine; polyionic liquid hydrogels; Tensile strength; Toxicity; wound dressing
• ISSN: 1022-1336; 1521-3927
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.202300689

Polyionic liquid hydrogels attract increasing attention due to their unique properties and potential applications. However, research on amino acid‐based polyionic liquid hydrogels is still in its infancy stage. Moreover, the effect of amino acid types on the properties of hydrogels is rarely studied to date. In this work, amino acid‐based polyionic liquid hydrogels (D/L‐PCAA hydrogels) are synthesized by copolymerizing vinyl choline–amino acid ionic liquids and acrylic acids using Al3+ as a crosslinking agent and bacterial cellulose (BC) as a reinforcing agent. The effects of amino acid types on mechanical and antimicrobial properties are systematically investigated. D‐arginine‐based hydrogel (D‐PCArg) shows the highest tensile strength (220.7 KPa), D‐phenylalanine‐based hydrogel (D‐PCPhe) exhibits the highest elongation at break (1346%), and L‐aspartic acid‐based hydrogel (L‐PCAsp) has the highest elastic modulus (206.9 KPa) and toughness (1.74 MJ m−3). D/L‐PCAsp hydrogels demonstrate stronger antibacterial capacity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, and D/L‐PCPhe hydrogels possess higher antifungal activity against Cryptococcus neoformans. Moreover, the resultant hydrogels exhibit prominent hemocompatibility and low toxicity, as well as excellent self‐healing capabilities (86%) and conductivity (2.8 S m−1). These results indicate that D/L‐PCAA hydrogel provides a promise for applications in wound dressings. The amino acid‐based polyionic liquid hydrogels (D/L‐PCAA) are successfully synthesized. Different amino acids have a significant effect on the properties of hydrogels. D/L‐PCAA hydrogels possess excellent mechanical properties, self‐healing properties, and conductivity, as well as superior antimicrobial properties and biocompatibility.