Tissue engineering is steadily evolving and at the same time awakening the interest among scientific community as a tool to solve numerous medical problems like organ transplant failure, disease treatment, genetic disorder remediation, and stem cell culture. But tissue engineering has been plagued by drawbacks such as lack of suitable tissue support matrices which would support engineered tissues to grow in an in vitro condition. Hydrogels being a polymer have been generating interest to be used as support matrices in various tissue engineering processes due to its malleability properties. Hydrogels can be considered as frontrunners' cell support materials used in tissue engineering. Rigid structure of hydrogel provides ample support to growing cells and its inertness also ensures there is no interaction between cells and the polymer itself. Ample availability of variants of hydrogels also ensures its application in the fields of cell culture, self-healing, and drug delivery. Its ability to be used in different fields leads hydrogels to be called as smart hydrogels as they also find their use in soft robotics as well as amenable and modifiable accoutrements which can be used as bioenzymes, chemical sensors, and absorbents for carbon prisoner. The need of inexhaustible source of transplant organs also puts emphasis on utilization of hydrogels as scaffolds and as cell support material.
Hydrogels are hydrophilic polymers that retain large amounts of water in their three-dimensional polymeric structures. Ordinary hydrogels were progressively exchanged by artificial types due to their huge water absorption ability. The discovery of hydrogel plays a significant role in the biomedical field without any hazard. Hydrogel has many applications in the biomedical field such as bone tissue engineering, drug delivery, insulin delivery, nanomedicine, personal care products, contact lenses, food packaging, and agriculture setup. Although the use of hydrogels is exceedingly high, this chapter covers a few miscellaneous applications of hydrogels in biomedicals, foods, agriculture, and catalysis.
The hydrophilic polymer networks that make up hydrogels are capable of absorbing large quantity of water, which increases their volume and causes them to exhibit a wide range of diverse material characteristics. They have been used in a variety of biological sectors since their first practical application in the 1960s. After more than 50 years of industrial usage, a variety of hydrogels are now available on the market for various uses and with a wide range of properties. Even though it would be nearly impossible to identify all the commercial products based on hydrogels for biological applications, a thorough study of the materials that have made it to market has been done in this chapter. Moreover, the handling of the menstrual cycle via unhygienic cloth-based products and their subsequent health problems are also discussed here. However, the primary aim of this chapter is to target the application of hydrogels to personal care products, including baby diapers and feminine incontinence products like sanitary pads, and to describe their advantages. Aside from these, this chapter covers a brief history, the structure, and classification of hydrogels.
Hydrogels are three-dimensional networks that have been recently investigated for their drug delivery applications. Hydrogels have the innate property of controlled drug release and quick response. Drug delivery of therapeutics, cells, and biomolecules involves a transporting vehicle such as hydrogels. Hydrogels have optimized drug loading and release. The first part focuses on various conventional and advanced strategies for the drug delivery of hydrogels such as the solvent casting method. Particulate leaching, freeze-drying, microfluidics, electrospinning, and lithography have been discussed in this chapter. The second part describes the various routes such as intramuscular (injection), transdermal, nasal, buccal, oral, and rectal drug delivery to polymer-based hydrogels for drug delivery applications.
In this chapter, the role of hydrogels is discussed in kidney carcinoma. These versatile biomaterials, known for their unique properties and diverse applications in biomedicine, extend their influence far beyond drug delivery. From tissue engineering to wound healing and more, hydrogels have become pivotal players in addressing the multifaceted challenge posed by kidney carcinoma. As the field of hydrogel technology continues to advance, it holds immense promise in revolutionizing personalized medicine. By providing effective, patient-centric solutions, hydrogels emerge as powerful allies in the fight against this formidable disease. The integration of hydrogels into kidney carcinoma therapy represents a promising frontier. These biomaterials offer the distinct advantages of localized drug delivery, biocompatibility, and adaptability to the tumor microenvironment. Researchers' tireless efforts in refining drug-eluting hydrogels and exploring innovative approaches provide a beacon of hope for improved treatment outcomes and enhanced patient quality of life.
