A time-resolved SAXS/WAXS study of super-structure formation in glycyrrhizin-based wound healing hydrogels

Glycyrrhizin (GA) containing hydrogels are used in wound healing applications since the GA increases the wound healing speed. GA forms hydrogels by an entropically-driven self-assembly into large cross-linked structures in water.1 These large structures are rapidly formed and contain fibrillar building blocks.2 Up to now, it is unclear how these fibrils self-assemble into larger constructs and how they can form crosslinked domains. As the self-assembly of GA gels happens within minutes fast recording is crucial to understand this process.3 When using these gels in wound healing applications, the gel strength is important for the gel to remain on the wound while glycerrhizin is released into the wound environment. Therefore, a study of the structure kinetics and structure evolution during the self-assembly process is essential to link with biological effects in wound healing processes.