Semi-interpenetrating polymeric networks based on poly(dimethylsiloxane)-chitosan-poly(vinyl alcohol) crosslinked with genipin with possible use in biomedical applications

We demonstrate that semi-interpenetrating polymeric networks are obtained by blending synthetic and natural polymers such as poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA), and chitosan (CS) crosslinked with glutaraldehyde (GA) or genipin (GEN). In membrane shape, these polymeric networks combine the elasticity of PDMS, the swelling capability of PVA, and the excellent cellular adhesion of CS successfully. Moreover, with the crosslinker reagents, these semi-interpenetrating networks presented attractive physicochemical properties for biological applications. Among them, we found roughnesses of a dozen nanometers, contact angles between 55 and 75 degrees, moderate but useful swelling ratios up to 28%, and elastic moduli ranging between 0.7 and 1.5 MPa. The biological characterization demonstrates that our semi-interpenetrating polymeric networks, filled or not with multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs), did not present cytotoxic effects and allowed the adhesion of immortalized mouse embryonic fibroblasts (3T3-L1) cells. Our results suggest that PDMS/CS/PVA/GEN and PDMS/CS/PVA/GEN/MWCNTs membranes could have great possibilities in areas such as tissue engineering, wound dressing, photothermal therapies, Lab-on-a-chip devices, or even as optically driven bio-actuators.