Nano-hydroxyapatite/polyacrylamide composite hydrogels with high mechanical strengths and cell adhesion properties

Nano-hydroxyapatite/polyacrylamide composite hydrogels were successfully fabricated by physically mixing nano-hydroxyapatite (nHAp) particles into a peroxidized micelles initiated and cross-linked (pMIC) polyacrylamide (PAAm) hydrogel. The nanocomposite hydrogels exhibited excellent mechanical properties. The fracture tensile stresses of the gels were in the range of 0.21–0.86 MPa and the fracture tensile strains were up to 30 mm/mm, and the compressive strengths were up to 35.8 MPa. Meanwhile the introduction of nHAp endowed the composite hydrogels with good cell adhesion properties. This nHAp/PAAm nanocomposite hydrogel is expected to find potential applications in tissue engineering.