Periodic mesoporous organosilica-based nanocomposite hydrogels for biomedical applications

Hydrogels can imitate native tissue microenvironments owing to their promising structural and functional properties. Integration of nanoparticles, such as periodic mesoporous organosilicas (PMOs), within the hydrogel network has been adopted to develop porous nanocomposite (NC)-based polymeric hydrogel for strengthening its biomedical application. Due to the exceptional physicochemical characteristics of integrated PMOs, such as highly ordered pores, promising surface area, small pore-size allocation, and easy surface functionalization, the NC hydrogel offers several biomedical applications. The NC hydrogels act as three-dimensional matrices for cell proliferation and tissue regeneration. The pores of the PMOs dipped in NC hydrogels facilitate for small molecules, such as drugs or peptides, to stay in these and timely release to the target sites. This chapter focuses on the recent development of PMO-based NC hydrogels along with their application in tissue engineering, drug delivery, and hemostasis.