The applicability of an amidated polysaccharide hydrogel as a cartilage substitute: structural and rheological characterization

An amidic derivative of a carboxymethylcellulose-based hydrogel was obtained and characterized in terms of amidation degree. NMR studies and FT-IR imaging spectroscopy demonstrated that the reaction allowed a polymer to be obtained that was characterized by a regular distribution of amidic groups along the polysaccharide chains. Through this regularity, a homogenous three-dimensional scaffold was obtained, which maintained the thixotropic property of the linear polysaccharide.