{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,26]],"date-time":"2026-09-26T02:45:22Z","timestamp":1790390722664,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"8","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,19]],"date-time":"2022-08-19T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1660867200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100006595","name":"Ministry of Research, Innovation and Digitization, CNCS\/CCCDI-UEFISCDI","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["PN-III-P2-2.1-PED-2021-3900"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["PN-III-P2-2.1-PED-2021-3900"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100006595","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Gels"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Recently, the development of new materials with the desired characteristics for functional tissue engineering, ensuring tissue architecture and supporting cellular growth, has gained significant attention. Hydrogels, which possess similar properties to natural cellular matrixes, being able to repair or replace biological tissues and support the healing process through cellular proliferation and viability, are a challenge when designing tissue scaffolds. This paper provides new insights into hydrogel-based polymeric blends (hydroxypropyl cellulose\/Pluronic F68), aiming to evaluate the contributions of both components in the development of new tissue scaffolds. In order to study the interactions within the hydrogel blends, FTIR and 1HNMR spectroscopies were used. The porosity and the behavior in moisture medium were highlighted by SEM and DVS analyses. The biodegradability of the hydrogel blends was studied in a simulated biological medium. The hydrogel composition was determinant for the scaffold behavior: the HPC component was found to have a great influence on the BET and GAB areas, on the monolayer values estimated from sorption\u2013desorption isotherms and on mucoadhesivity on small intestine mucosa, while the Pluronic F68 component improved the thermal stability. All blends were also found to have good mechanical strength and increased biocompatibility on the NHDF cell line. Based on their particular compositions and increased mucoadhesivity on small intestine mucosa, these polymeric blends could be effective in the repair or recovery of damaged cell membranes (due to the contribution of Pluronic F68) or in control drug-delivery intestinal formulations.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/gels8080519","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,21]],"date-time":"2022-08-21T22:23:13Z","timestamp":1661120593000},"page":"519","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":32,"title":["Hydroxypropyl Cellulose\/Pluronic-Based Composite Hydrogels as Biodegradable Mucoadhesive Scaffolds for Tissue Engineering"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"8","author":[{"given":"Daniela","family":"Filip","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Doina","family":"Macocinschi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Physical Chemistry of Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6692-0481","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mirela-Fernanda","family":"Zaltariov","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Inorganic Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Bianca-Iulia","family":"Ciubotaru","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Inorganic Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9433-9595","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Alexandra","family":"Bargan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Inorganic Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4813-9162","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Cristian-Dragos","family":"Varganici","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre of Advanced Research in Bionanoconjugates and Biopolymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0042-671X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ana-Lavinia","family":"Vasiliu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Functional Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Dragos","family":"Peptanariu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Centre of Advanced Research in Bionanoconjugates and Biopolymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8988-070X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mihaela","family":"Balan-Porcarasu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Laboratory of Polycondensation and Thermostable Polymers, \u201cPetru Poni\u201d Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry, Aleea Gr. Ghica Voda 41 A, 700487 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mihaela-Madalina","family":"Timofte-Zorila","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Saint Spiridon County Hospital, Bulevardul Independentei 1, \u201cGr. T. Popa\u201d University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 16 Universitatii Street, 700115 Iasi, Romania"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,19]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Majee, S.B. (2016). Emerging Concepts in Analysis and Applications of Hydrogels, IntechOpen.","DOI":"10.5772\/61692"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"4337","DOI":"10.1016\/S0142-9612(03)00340-5","article-title":"Hydrogels for tissue engineering: Scaffold design variables and applications","volume":"24","author":"Drury","year":"2003","journal-title":"Biomaterials"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"325","DOI":"10.1016\/j.colsurfa.2018.09.062","article-title":"Miscibility study on polymer mixtures in dilute solution","volume":"559","author":"Teodorescu","year":"2018","journal-title":"Colloids Surf. APhysicochem. Eng. Asp."},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"153","DOI":"10.1007\/s40204-018-0095-0","article-title":"Cellulose-based hydrogel materials: Chemistry, properties and their prospective applications","volume":"7","author":"Kabir","year":"2018","journal-title":"Prog. Biomater."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"184","DOI":"10.1039\/C9PY01021A","article-title":"Hydrogel scaffolds for tissue engineering: The importance of polymer choice","volume":"11","author":"Spicer","year":"2020","journal-title":"Polym. Chem."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"683079","DOI":"10.3389\/fbioe.2021.683079","article-title":"Adhesive Tissue Engineered Scaffolds: Mechanisms and Applications","volume":"9","author":"Chen","year":"2021","journal-title":"Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol."},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"903","DOI":"10.35812\/CelluloseChemTechnol.2020.54.87","article-title":"Hydrohypropyl cellulose\/polyurethane blends. The behavior after accelerated ageing. A FTIR study","volume":"54","author":"Zaltariov","year":"2020","journal-title":"Cellul. Chem. Technol."},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"223","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jobab.2020.10.001","article-title":"Cellulose nanocomposites: Fabrication and biomedical applications","volume":"5","author":"Joseph","year":"2020","journal-title":"J. Bioresour. Bioprod."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Bodratti, A.M., and Alexandridis, P. (2018). Formulation of Poloxamers for Drug Delivery. J. Funct. Biomater., 9.","DOI":"10.3390\/jfb9010011"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Giuliano, E., Paolino, D., Fresta, M., and Cosco, D. (2018). Mucosal Applications of Poloxamer 407-Based Hydrogels: An Overview. Pharmaceutics, 10.","DOI":"10.3390\/pharmaceutics10030159"},{"key":"ref_11","first-page":"339","article-title":"Applications of thermo-reversible Pluronic F-127 gels in pharmaceutical Formulations","volume":"9","author":"Kalia","year":"2006","journal-title":"J. Pharm. Pharm. Sci."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"607","DOI":"10.1586\/erd.11.27","article-title":"Design properties of hydrogel tissue-engineering scaffolds","volume":"8","author":"Zhu","year":"2011","journal-title":"Expert Rev. Med. Devices"},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2369","DOI":"10.1002\/app.28163","article-title":"In Situ Gel Forming Systems of Poloxamer 407 and Hydroxypropyl Cellulose or Hydroxypropyl Methyl Cellulose Mixtures for Controlled Delivery of Vancomycin","volume":"109","author":"Talasaz","year":"2008","journal-title":"J. Appl. Polym. Sci."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"59","DOI":"10.2478\/v10007-012-0009-y","article-title":"Development and characterization of thermosensitivepluronic-based metronidazole in situ gelling formulations for vaginal application","volume":"62","author":"Ibrahim","year":"2012","journal-title":"Acta Pharm."},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2653","DOI":"10.1021\/bm200464x","article-title":"Catechol-Functionalized Chitosan\/Pluronic Hydrogels for Tissue Adhesives and Hemostatic Materials","volume":"12","author":"Ryu","year":"2011","journal-title":"Biomacromolecules"},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"75","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jobab.2021.01.003","article-title":"Preparation and properties of cellulose nanocomposite fabrics with in situ generated silver nanoparticles by bioreduction method","volume":"6","author":"Deeksha","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Bioresour. Bioprod."},{"key":"ref_17","first-page":"195","article-title":"Mechanisms of pore formation in hydrogel scaffolds textured by freeze-drying","volume":"94","author":"Grenier","year":"2019","journal-title":"ActaBiomater."},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7617\u22127624","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.0c22584","article-title":"A Mussel-Inspired Polydopamine-Filled Cellulose Aerogel for Solar-Enabled Water Remediation","volume":"13","author":"Zou","year":"2021","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_19","unstructured":"Guggenheim, E.A. (1966). Application of Statistical Mechanics, Clarendon Press."},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"686","DOI":"10.1021\/ja01208a049","article-title":"Modifications of the Brunauer, Emmett and Teller Equation","volume":"68","author":"Anderson","year":"1946","journal-title":"J. Am. Chem. Soc."},{"key":"ref_21","unstructured":"De Boer, J.H. (1968). The Dynamical Character of Adsorption, Clarendon Press."},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"326","DOI":"10.1016\/j.micromeso.2016.07.032","article-title":"Porosity of wood pulp fibers in the wet and highly open dry state","volume":"234","author":"Lovikka","year":"2016","journal-title":"Microporous Mesoporous Mater."},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Radulescu, D.-M., Neacsu, I.A., Grumezescu, A.-M., and Andronescu, E. (2022). New Insights of Scaffolds Based on Hydrogels in Tissue Engineering. Polymers, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym14040799"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"35311","DOI":"10.1039\/C7RA05645A","article-title":"A facile method to fabricate hybrid hydrogels with mechanical toughness using a novel multifunctional cross-linker","volume":"7","author":"Li","year":"2017","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1197","DOI":"10.1002\/pol.1969.160070705","article-title":"Solid-State Characterization of the Structure and Deformation Behavior of Water-Soluble Hydroxypropylcellulose","volume":"7","author":"Samuels","year":"1969","journal-title":"J. Polym. Sci. Part A-2 Polym. Phys."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1231","DOI":"10.1002\/pen.20566","article-title":"Free Volume Microprobe Studies on Poly(methylmethacrylate)\/Poly(vinyl chloride) and Poly(vinyl chloride)\/Polystyrene Blends","volume":"46","author":"Kumaraswamy","year":"2006","journal-title":"Polym. Eng. Sci."},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"11","DOI":"10.1016\/j.proeng.2016.06.448","article-title":"Effect of Glass Transition Temperature in Enhanced Polymeric Blend Membranes","volume":"148","author":"Mushtaq","year":"2016","journal-title":"Procedia Eng."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"012025","DOI":"10.1088\/1742-6596\/618\/1\/012025","article-title":"Direct correlation between free volume and dielectric constant in a fluorine-containing polyimide blend","volume":"618","author":"Ramani","year":"2015","journal-title":"J. Phys. Conf. Ser."},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"661","DOI":"10.1002\/macp.1989.021900322","article-title":"Thermal behavior, morphology and the determination of the polymer-polymer interaction parameter of polycarbonate-poly(butylene terephthalate) blends","volume":"190","author":"Kim","year":"1989","journal-title":"Makromol. Chem."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1407","DOI":"10.1002\/polb.10199","article-title":"Polyetherether Ketone\/Polyarylethersulfone Blends:Thermal and Compatibility Aspects","volume":"40","author":"Nandan","year":"2002","journal-title":"J. Polym. Sci. Part B Polym. Phys."},{"key":"ref_31","unstructured":"Lin, S.-C., Coates, M., Pearce, E.M., and Huang, P.-T. (2001). Compatible Blends of Polyvinylidene Fluoride and Aromatic Polyimide. (US 6313222B1)."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"68","DOI":"10.1038\/201068a0","article-title":"Kinetic Parameters from Thermogravimetric Data","volume":"201","author":"Coats","year":"1964","journal-title":"Nature"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"102","DOI":"10.1002\/macp.1963.020660110","article-title":"Thermal Stability Indices for Polymeric Materials Based on Energy Considerations","volume":"66","author":"Reich","year":"1963","journal-title":"Die Makromol. Chem. Macromol. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"ref_34","first-page":"100076","article-title":"In vitro and in vivo assessment of hydroxypropyl cellulose as functional additive for enabling formulations containing itraconazole","volume":"3","author":"Bachmaier","year":"2021","journal-title":"Int. J. Pharm. X"},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1855","DOI":"10.1002\/pol.20210240","article-title":"New insights into the use of hydroxypropyl cellulose for drug solubility enhancement: An analytical study of submolecular interactions with fenofibrate in solid state and aqueous solutions","volume":"59","author":"Stoyanov","year":"2021","journal-title":"J. Appl. Polym. Sci."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1893","DOI":"10.1007\/s10570-020-03674-w","article-title":"Cellulose and its derivatives: Towards biomedical applications","volume":"28","author":"Seddiqi","year":"2021","journal-title":"Cellulose"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"669","DOI":"10.3892\/mmr_00000314","article-title":"Poloxamer 188 enhances apoptosis in a human leukemia cell line","volume":"3","author":"Hisatomi","year":"2010","journal-title":"Mol. Med. Rep."},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"197","DOI":"10.1016\/0168-3659(93)90078-J","article-title":"An investigation into the role of water movement and mucus gel dehydration in mucoadhesion","volume":"25","author":"Mortazavi","year":"1993","journal-title":"J. Control. Release"},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2263","DOI":"10.1007\/s10570-013-0006-4","article-title":"Cellulose-based materials as scaffolds for tissue engineering","volume":"20","author":"Novotna","year":"2013","journal-title":"Cellulose"},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"545","DOI":"10.1163\/156856108X295509","article-title":"Adhesion and Surface Issues in Cellulose and Nanocellulose","volume":"22","author":"Gardner","year":"2008","journal-title":"J. Adhes. Sci. Technol."},{"key":"ref_41","first-page":"274","article-title":"Bioadhesive polymers: Novel tool for drug delivery. Artif","volume":"42","author":"Kumar","year":"2014","journal-title":"Cells Nanomed. Biotechnol."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"3","DOI":"10.1016\/j.addr.2017.09.023","article-title":"The biology of mucus: Composition, synthesis and organization","volume":"124","author":"Bansil","year":"2018","journal-title":"Adv. Drug Deliv. Rev."},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"555","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijpharm.2017.09.018","article-title":"Physicochemical properties of mucus and their impact on transmucosal drug delivery","volume":"532","author":"Leal","year":"2017","journal-title":"Int. J. Pharm."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"639","DOI":"10.1063\/1.1742588","article-title":"Correlation of Infrared Stretching Frequencies and Hydrogen Bond Distances in Crystals","volume":"24","author":"Pimentel","year":"1956","journal-title":"J. Chem. Phys."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"973","DOI":"10.1080\/00222338608081105","article-title":"Modification of Lignins. III. Reaction of Lignosulfonates with Chlorophosphazenes","volume":"23","author":"Struszczyk","year":"1986","journal-title":"J. Macromol. Sci. Chem."}],"container-title":["Gels"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2310-2861\/8\/8\/519\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T00:12:34Z","timestamp":1760141554000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2310-2861\/8\/8\/519"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,19]]},"references-count":45,"journal-issue":{"issue":"8","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2022,8]]}},"alternative-id":["gels8080519"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/gels8080519","relation":{},"ISSN":["2310-2861"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2310-2861","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2022,8,19]]}}}