Hydrogel as a Nerve Guide and Biocompatible Glue for Neural Applications

In the present work, Poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) biocompatible hydrogel has been employed for two neural applications: nerve guide conduits and as an in-vitro neural bioglue. Nerve guide conduits (NGCs) are widely accepted in the treatment of peripheral nerve injuries. In the first application, we present the design of a simple and low-cost method to fabricate hydrogel-based NGCs. In this method we employ light curing method for 5 seconds to fabricate NGCs in a short span of time. The fabricated NGC was assessed in vitro to demonstrate the neural application. The efficient, low-cost and simple method proposed in this study addresses the limitations in existing expensive and time-consuming techniques of fabricating NGCs. Secondly, we demonstrate the application of PEGDA as an in-vitro neural bioglue. Micro electrode neural interface requires effective binding to achieve low signal-to-noise ratio during neural signal recording, hence there is a great demand for developing surgical glues which are nontoxic, biocompatible and which work well in highly corrosive environments within the body. We employed a photosensitive hydrogel, which can be cured within a few seconds to secure electrodes when interfaced with small nerves.