PREPARATION OF CELLULOSE-BASED HYDROGELS AND THEIR CHARACTERISTICS FOR CELL CULTURE

A series of cellulose-based "hydrogels were produced by crosslinking of hydroxypropylcellulose (HPC) and carboxymethylcellulose sodium salt (CMCNa) with citric acid (CA) and the gelation ability of the prepared crosslinked polymers was investigated in detail. It was found that the swelling ratio of the prepared hydrogels was closely related with their preparation conditions, such as reaction time and temperature. The gelators and resulting hydrogels were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), respectively. The biocompatibility of the hydrogels was verified by in vitro cell viability studies on fibroblasts L929. The results showed that these crosslinked hydrogels can be used for potential biomaterial applications.