Responsive DNA‐Based Hydrogels and Their Applications. Issue 16 (16th July 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Xiong, Xiangling; Wu, Cuichen; Zhou, Cuisong; Zhu, Guizhi; Chen, Zhuo; Tan, Weihong
• Is Part Of: Macromolecular rapid communications. Volume 34:Issue 16(2013:Aug.)
• Page Start: 1271
• Page End: 1283
• Publication Date: 2013-07-16
• Subjects: Macromolecules -- Periodicals; Polymers -- Periodicals; Chemistry -- Periodicals; 547.705
• DOI: 10.1002/marc.201300411
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1022-1336

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" xml:lang="en"> <title> <x xml:space="preserve">Abstract</x> </title> <p>The term hydrogel describes a type of soft and wet material formed by cross‐linked hydrophilic polymers. The distinct feature of hydrogels is their ability to absorb a large amount of water and swell. The properties of a hydrogel are usually determined by the chemical properties of their constituent polymer(s). However, a group of hydrogels, called "smart hydrogels, " changes properties in response to environmental changes or external stimuli. Recently, DNA or DNA‐inspired responsive hydrogels have attracted considerable attention in construction of smart hydrogels because of the intrinsic advantages of DNA. As a biological polymer, DNA is hydrophilic, biocompatible, and highly programmable by Watson‐Crick base pairing. DNA can form a hydrogel by itself under certain conditions, and it can also be incorporated into synthetic polymers to form DNA‐hybrid hydrogels. Functional DNAs, such as aptamers and DNAzymes, provide additional molecular recognition capabilities and versatility. In this Review, DNA‐based hydrogels are discussed in terms of their stimulus response, as well as their applications. <boxed-text content-type="graphic" position="anchor" orientation="portrait"><graphic position="anchor" mimetype="image" xlink:href="ark:/27927/pgg37fg0b0h" orientation="portrait" xlink:type="simple" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" /></boxed-text></p> </abstract>