Journal of materials chemistry. BSep 17, 2025

A stretchy, electrically conductive gel for 3D printing heart tissue

Regenerative Health Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Jan 7, 2026

Abstract

The electrical conductivity of the developed hydrogel is 0.62 ± 0.05 mS cm.

An interpenetrating network hydrogel combining methacrylate-modified polyvinyl alcohol and gellan gum was created and reinforced with reduced graphene oxide.
The hydrogel demonstrated a porous structure with interconnected pores and high porosity and swellability.
Rheological analysis indicated the hydrogel's shear-thinning property and predominant elastic modulus, making it suitable for 3D printing.
Cultured cardiomyoblasts and endothelial cells on the printed constructs showed favorable cell viability and proliferation.
The hydrogel's composition influenced cardiac-specific gene expression in the cultured cells.

Simplified

Biofabrication of cardiac tissue constructs with inherent electrical conductivity and contractility presents a significant challenge. In this study, an interpenetrating network (IPN) hydrogel composed of methacrylate-modified polyvinyl alcohol (M-PVA) and gellan gum (GG) reinforced with reduced graphene oxide (rGO) has been developed. The M-PVA/GG/rGO hydrogel leverages the thermoresponsive property of polysaccharide gellan gum for controlled gelation during the 3D printing process, followed by post-printing photocrosslinking of M-PVA to enhance structural stability. The IPN hydrogel exhibited porous morphology with interconnected pores, high porosity, swellability, and significant electrical conductivity (0.62 ± 0.05 mS cm) imparted by the inclusion of rGO. Rheological analysis demonstrated the shear-thinning property and predominant elastic modulus of the developed hydrogel, thereby being suitable for pneumatic extrusion-based 3D printing. The printed constructs cultured with H9c2 cardiomyoblasts and EA.hy926 endothelial cells demonstrated favorablecell viability, proliferation, and cardiac specific gene expression, influenced by the matrix composition. The dual-crosslinked, electroconductive M-PVA/GG/rGO hydrogel shows significant promise for promoting vascularization in cardiac tissue engineering, facilitating tissue regeneration, development of organotypic models and potentially enabling the development of electroconductive biomedical devices. -1in vitro

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A stretchy, electrically conductive gel for 3D printing heart tissue

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