Preparation and characterization of sponge-like composites by cross-linking hyaluronic acid and carboxymethylcellulose sodium with adipic dihydrazide

The objective of this study was to develop a novel kind of hyaluronic acid-based biomaterials which had the great potentials to be used as dermal fillers or applied in tissue augmentation or filling. A series of sponge-like composites were prepared by cross-linking different amounts of hyaluronic acid (HA) and carboxymethylcellulose sodium (CMC-Na). Adipic dihydrazide (ADH) was employed as the cross-linker and water-soluble 1-ethyl-3-[3-(dimethylaminopropyl)] carbodiimide (EDC) as the carboxyl-activating agent. Fourier-Transform Infrared (FT-IR) analysis was performed to characterize the expected amide linkages in the cross-linked composites, and the scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis was carried out to view the microstructures of the composites. Furthermore, the physico-chemical properties, such as swelling property, thermostability, the resistance to hyaluronidase (HAse) degradation and the antioxidant abilities against hydroxyl free radical (OH), were characterized. The presence of the amide peak at 1476.11 cm−1 in FT-IR spectra indicated the cross-linking between HA and CMC-Na by ADH. As demonstrated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), the microstructures of the composites were dependent on HA content. The equilibrium swelling ratio was 20.091 ± 0.070, indicating the excellent water-uptake abilities of the composites. The HA-CMCNa composites showed a thermal stability up to 237 °C, independent of the composition of the prepared biomaterials. When exposed to phosphate-buffered saline (PBS) solution containing HAse (100 U/ml), all of the composites could be degraded quickly in 15 h. But when the concentrations of ADH and EDC in the cross-linking reaction system were increased up to 10 mmol/L, respectively, the degradation process lasted for 60 h. The prepared composites possessed great antioxidant abilities against OH and the ability to scavenge OH depended on the composition. With the high water-keeping ability and improved physico-chemical stabilities, the prepared biocompatible HA-CMCNa composites could be used as ideal alternatives for dermal fillers, tissue augmentation/filling biomaterials.