An approach to synthesizing photopatternable enzymatic degradable dextran hydrogel is presented. The glycidyl methacrylate derivatized dextran (Dex-GMA) was first prepared by reacting dextran with glycidyl methacrylate at 45°C with grafting efficiency of 10%. The degree of substitution (DS) was confirmed by 1H-NMR. Next, Dex-GMA hydrogels were prepared by crosslinking in the presence of a crosslinker: N,N- methylene-bisacrylamide (NMBA), and a photoinitiator: 2,2-dimethoxy-2-phenyl acetophenone (DMPA) in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) solution. Further, the Dex-GMA hydrogels were photopatterned using liquid-phase photopolymerization (LP3) technique. The structure size ranged from 5 mm to 300 m and three different shapes of structures- -  - round, square, and star- -  - were demonstrated. The patterned Dex-GMA hydrogel structures not only exhibited mechanical robustness but also biodegradability. The dextranase-catalyzed degradation of Dex-GMA hydrogels with different DS was investigated at 37°C. The morphology of the degraded Dex-GMA hydrogels determined by SEM revealed the degree of enzymatic degradation due to dextranase. The Dex-GMA hydrogel was fully degraded by dextranase with concentration of 2 U/ml in 5 days. The Dex-GMA hydrogel also showed the ability to be readily integrated with microfluidics.

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