Shape memory properties of polypeptide hydrogels having hydrophobic alkyl side chains

Polypeptide hydrogels were prepared by cross-linking of hydrophobically-modified poly[N5-(2-hydroxyethyl) l-glutamine] having alkyl side chains –CnH2n+1. Chain length of the alkyl group was n = 8, 16, and 18, and their mole fractions in the polypeptide were varied in the range of 0.05–0.16. Shape memory ability of the prepared polypeptide hydrogels was investigated. After deformation at 60 °C, the hydrogel was cooled in order to fix the temporary deformed shape. It was found that crystallization of the alkyl side chains did not occur, and the fixation ability of the hydrogel at 0 °C was low. In the subsequent heating process, the deformed temporary shape spontaneously recovered to the original shape gradually with increasing temperature, in other words, the shape recovery ratio varied with depending on the recovery temperature. From these observations, it was proposed that the shape fixation of the polypeptide hydrogel was achieved by strong segregation of the hydrophobic alkyl chains at low temperature, and the shape recovery of the deformed hydrogel was accompanied by the gradual decrease of the segregation strength with the temperature increase.