Affiliations: Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy | Fidia Farmaceutici SpA, Abano Terme, Padova, Italy
Note: [] Address for correspondence: Prof. Gaio Paradossi, Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Chimiche, Università di Roma Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133 Roma, Italy. Tel.: +39 6 7259 4464; Fax: +39 6 7259 4328; E-mail: paradossi@stc. uniroma2.it.
Abstract: A novel partially hydrophobized derivative of hyaluronic acid (HYADD®4), containing a low number of C16 side-chains per polysaccharide backbone, provides injectable hydrogels stabilized by side-chain hydrophobic interactions. The rheological properties of Hymovis®, a physical hydrogel based on the hyaluronic acid derivative HYADD®4, were evaluated using as reference a solution of the parent natural polysaccharide, hyaluronic acid. The rheological measurements were performed both in flow and oscillation regimes at the physiological frequency values of the knee, typically spanning the range from 0.5 Hz (walking frequency) to 3 Hz (running frequency). Moreover, the viscoelastic features of Hymovis® were compared with the market-available viscosupplementation products in view of its use in joint diseases. The different behavior of the investigated materials in crossover frequency measurements and in structure recovery experiments can be explained on the basis of the structural and dynamic properties of the polymeric systems.
