Design of Thermo-Responsive Biopolymer Gels for Formulation and Delivery of Epidermal Growth Factors

Growth factors are naturally produced proteins that regulate cell proliferation, function, and differentiation through receptor signaling. They regulate many cellular processes like development, metabolism, or immune responses, and due to their short half-life and low intercellular diffusion, they operate locally in the body. Epidermal growth factors (EGF) serve as promising candidates for skin regeneration and rejuvenation products, but their instability hinders them from widespread use. Protective immobilization and directed release can be achieved through implementing a hydrogel delivery system. Alginate and methylcellulose are both natural polymers offering biocompatibility and environmental sensitivity. This blended gel system was developed and investigated rheologically to understand its performance in topical applications. Alginate and methylcellulose were found to form a synergistic gel system that resulted in superior viscosity and thermoresponsiveness compared to the individual components. Increasing methylcellulose concentration directly enhanced gel elasticity, and higher viscosities provided better thermal protection of EGF. An alginate-methylcellulose system presents promising rheological tunability which may provide EGF thermal protection in a topical delivery format.