Fibrous hydrogels
As a 3D network of a hydrophilic polymer material that enables absorbing and holding large amounts of water, hydrogels are broadly used in many industries such as food and cosmetics. Also our own bodies are composed of hydrogels and, as such, they developed as a versatile biomedical research tool. The Molecular Materials group of Kouwer developed a synthetic gel that can be used for cell culture applications, including the growth of stem cells, formation of tumor organoids for disease modelling, cell-based assays for drug screening, stimulation of wound healing and controlled drug release.