A new gel made with BPC-157 and chitosan was tested in a lab

The science

Original title

Fabrication and characterization of biocompatible BPC-157 based chitosan hydrogel.

Authors

Arunim, Dagar M, Solanki M et al.

Journal

3 Biotech

Published

Aug 5, 2026

Study type

Study

PMID

42555375 ↗

DOI

10.1007/s13205-026-04951-4 ↗

Abstract

Multifunctional hydrogels are essential for advanced biomedical applications. In this study, CH/BPC composite hydrogel was fabricated and characterized for their physicochemical properties. The formulation exhibited a porous structure, analyzed through scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed the presence of hydrogen bond between BPC-157 peptide and chitosan backbone, indicating successful peptide incorporation within the hydrogel matrix. The composite hydrogel exhibited a balanced water vapor transmission rate (2,270 ± 35 g/m2 /day), along with remarkable properties of injectability, self-healing capability, and adhesiveness. Furthermore, the hydrogel demonstrated excellent encapsulation (98.9 ± 0.8%) of BPC-157, with release profile of 81.2 ± 2.9% within 24 h. In addition, the CH/BPC hydrogel demonstrated potent antibacterial efficacy, achieving up to 45.9% (Escherichia coli) and 65.0% (Staphylococcus aureus) inhibition. The fabricated hydrogel also showed a hemolysis rate of less than 5%, indicating acceptable hemocompatibility. Collectively, these findings indicate that CH/BPC hydrogel possesses desirable physicochemical and antibacterial characteristics, highlighting their potential as multifunctional hydrogel for future biomedical applications.

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