Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40525723›Full record

ArticleAdvanced healthcare materials2025

Decoding Hydrogel Porosity: Advancing the Structural Analysis of Hydrogels for Biomedical Applications.

M A Kristine Tolentino, Eric Y Du, Giulia Silvani, Elvis Pandzic, Kristopher A Kilian, J Justin Gooding

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Advanced healthcare materials, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed.

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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

M A Kristine TolentinoSchool of Chemistry and Australian Centre of NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5046-698X
Eric Y DuSchool of Chemistry and Australian Centre of NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
Giulia SilvaniSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
Elvis PandzicKatharina Gaus Light Microscopy Facility, Mark Wainwright Analytical Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
Kristopher A KilianSchool of Chemistry and Australian Centre of NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8963-9796
J Justin GoodingSchool of Chemistry and Australian Centre of NanoMedicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5398-0597

Funding

Engineered microtumor arrays for development of combination therapiesR01CA251443 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF NEW SOUTH WALES · PI COPLAND, JOHN A., KILIAN, KRISTOPHER ALAN · 2020 to 2024
$998k
National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health R01CA251443National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Investigator GNT1196648National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Synergy Grant GNT2019056NCI NIH HHS R01 CA251443
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Hydrogels are essential biomaterials for biomedical applications, valued for their tunable properties and biocompatibility. A key feature influencing their function is porosity, which governs transport properties. Cryogenic scanning electron microscopy (cryo-SEM) is widely used to directly characterize porosity, but may introduce structural artifacts. Accurately characterizing the porosity of a hydrogel in its native state remains a challenge. Here, we characterized the hydrogel porosity in its native state using particle tracking assay and compared the results with cryo-SEM in polyethylene glycol (PEG) hydrogels. Both methods revealed the presence of micropores in PEG, likely arising from defects during polymerization. The equilibrium swelling assay showed nanoscale mesh sizes between polymer chains, distinct from the micron-scale pores. To overcome conventional limitations, we developed a novel three-dimensional (3D) pore reconstruction approach by leveraging the convex hull algorithm. The method enabled measurement of pore volume, surface area, sphericity, and size distribution. We found that cryo-SEM underestimates pore diameters due to the two-dimensional (2D) depiction, but after the 2D-to-3D conversion, remarkably similar pore dimensions are obtained. By advancing porosity analysis, this work provides insights for tailoring hydrogels to optimize interactions with cells, biomolecules, and therapeutic agents, opening avenues in drug delivery, tissue engineering, and other biomedical applications.

Indexed as

Biocompatible MaterialsHydrogelsCryoelectron MicroscopyMicroscopy, Electron, ScanningPolyethylene GlycolsPorosityBiocompatible MaterialsHydrogelsPolyethylene Glycolsconvex hull algorithmdiffusionhydrogel structurepacking algorithmparticle trackingporosity characterization

Identifiers

PMID40525723
PMCPMC12391661

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.