Discovery Projects - Grant ID: DP0208223

Funded Activity Summary

Calcification of acrylic hydrogels in abiotic media: mechanism and control. Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (PHEMA) and other acrylic hydrogels are extensively used as biomaterials, yet conclusive evidence exists that they have a propensity to calcify following implantation. This process has undesirable consequences on the functionality of various prostheses. Based on preliminary observations that PHEMA can promote the deposition of calcium minerals from media devoid of biological factors, which appears thus to be an inherent property of the polymer, the project aims at formulating new hypotheses to explain this phenomenon, and to confirm them experimentally. The "chelation" hypothesis will be validated by modifying the structure of polymers, and the "spontaneous precipitation" hypothesis by assessing the effect of solutes on the equilibrium water content of polymers. NMR and FTIR spectrometric techniques will be used to gain further insight into the mechanism of calcification. Methods to prevent the calcification will potentially result from these experiments, however, anticalcification agents will also be incorporated into hydrogels and their effect evaluated in calcification assays.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 29-04-2002

End Date: 28-04-2005

Funding Scheme: Discovery Projects

Funding Amount: $305,000.00

Funder: Australian Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Synthesis Of Macromolecules | Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry | Biomaterials | Characterisation Of Macromolecules

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

Chemical sciences | Polymeric materials (e.g. paints) |

Other Keywords

Biomaterials | Characterisation Of Macromolecules | Chemical sciences | Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry | Polymeric materials (e.g. paints) | Synthesis Of Macromolecules

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