Post by Magnetic Soft Matter Group UGR

We are pleased to share our latest publication in Advanced Materials: “Engineering Layered Magnetic Hydrogels for Cell Placement via Shear and Magnetic Field-Induced Assembly” In this work, we show how magnetic particles can be directed to self-assemble inside biocompatible hydrogels, generating layered internal architectures that can be fixed during gelation. The study explores two different physical routes to obtain lamellar magnetic hydrogels: i) high-frequency perturbating magnetic fields applied to quiescent suspensions; ii) the combination of steady magnetic fields and shear flow. Although both routes lead to layered structures, they rely on different mechanisms. By comparing them, we establish the conditions under which chains, layer fragments, or continuous lamellae are formed, and show how the interlamellar spacing can be tuned from tens to hundreds of micrometres. Importantly, these structured hydrogels can confine human fibroblasts between adjacent magnetic-particle-rich layers, maintain high cell viability over 7 days of culture, and promote preferential cell alignment parallel to the lamellar architecture. This work was carried out at the F2N2Lab — Singular Laboratory in Advanced Technologies and the Magnetic Soft Matter Group at the University of Granada. Congratulations to all co-authors: Guillermo Camacho, Jose R. Morillas, Jesús García-Gutiérrez, Stefania Nardecchia, Óscar Martínez-Cano and Juan de Vicente. Read the article here: https://lnkd.in/edY_n5Up #AdvancedMaterials #Hydrogels #MagneticMaterials #SoftMatter #TissueEngineering #Biofabrication #SelfAssembly #Magnetorheology #UniversityOfGranada #F2N2Lab