Silica hydrogel prepared by synthetic peptides –part 1–; Synthesis and characterization of silica hydrogel

Abstract

Silica gel prepared by the sol-gel method was used acid (HCl) or base (NaOH) as a catalyst. Thus, this method was not suitable for encapsulating the drugs and proteins (enzymes) in the gel. The present study shows the novel synthetic method of silica hydrogel by peptide-catalyzed reactions under neutral conditions. Silica hydrogel obtained show highly water content and their dry gel has the mesoporous structure. These results indicate that these gels are applicable for encapsulating various unstable drugs and biomolecules.