CHAPTER 11: Supramolecular Gels for Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Applications

The supramolecular aggregation of low molecular weight species affords supramolecular gels. These materials consist of solid-like micro(nano)fibrillar networks and their formation is reversible and dependant on different stimuli. Their use in pharmaceutical and biomedical applications opens new possibilities when compared with conventional macromolecular gels. For example, improved therapeutic properties due to a high local concentration of functional groups at the surface of the fibres. The three-dimensional fibrillar network of these gels has been used successfully in different examples of cell culture and tissue engineering. Finally, cases of controlled release of drugs are reported which are based in the reversible nature of supramolecular gels.