Synthesis of novel thermo‐ and redox‐sensitive polypeptide hydrogels

Multi‐responsive hydrogels have recently received considerable attention for bioapplications. Here, novel temperature‐ and redox‐responsive polypetide hydrogels have been developed. Thermo‐sensitive hydrogels based on poly(ethyleneglycol)‐block‐poly(γ‐propargyl‐l‐glutamate) (PEG‐PPLG) were first synthesized by the ring opening polymerization of γ‐propargyl‐l‐glutamate N‐carboxyanhydride (PLG‐NCA) with amino group terminated PEG monomethyl ether (mPEG‐NH2) as macroinitiator and were then functionalized via the ‘thiol‐yne’ click reaction between the propargyl pendents and the thiol‐containing 1‐propanethiol. The sol − gel phase transition of the obtained copolymer aqueous solution in response to temperature change was studied. The mass loss of the hydrogel in vitro was accelerated in the presence of H2O2, exhibiting a redox‐responsive property. Further, the methyl thiazolyl tetrazolium viability results revealed that this polypetide hydrogel has excellent biocompatibility, presenting potential applications in the biomedical field. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry Here, novel polypetide hydrogels with temperature‐ and redox‐responsive properties have been developed.