Preparation of mechanically enhanced hydrogel scaffolds by incorporating interfacial polymer nanorods for nerve electrode application

Abstract

Hydrogel-based integral nerve electrodes have been studied as an effective implant strategy for recovery after a spinal cord injury (SCI). However, a weak physical connection between the hydrogel and nerve electrode can lead to implant failure. In this study, we introduce poly(L-lactic acid) (PLA) nanorods (PLANRs) as a new approach to improve the physical property, i.e. stability of agarose hydrogel-based integrated neuro-electrodes. The hydrogels were characterized by scanning electron microscope (SEM), rheometry, and tensile test machine. Thus, the hydrogels containing PLANRs displayed high mechanical properties. These interesting findings suggest that PLANRs enhance the mechanical properties of integral nerve electrode hydrogels making them useful materials in neural tissue engineering.