A team of experts in mechanics, materials science, and
tissue engineering at Harvard have created an extremely stretchy and tough gel
that may pave the way to replacing damaged cartilage in human joints.
Called a hydrogel, because its main ingredient is water, the
new material is a hybrid of two weak gels that combine to create something much
stronger. Not only can this new gel stretch to 21 times its original length,
but it is also exceptionally tough, self-healing, and biocompatible—a valuable
collection of attributes that opens up new opportunities in medicine and tissue
engineering.
The material, its properties, and a simple method of
synthesis are described in the September 6 issue of Nature.