NIR-light responsive biocompatible composites for on-demand healing and drug release

Light responsive materials play an important role in many biomedical applications. Despite the great potential, commonly available systems are limited by their toxicity and lack of biodegradability. Here we describe, an efficient light triggered system from safe, biodegradable star-poly(ethylene glycol) (star-PEG) and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL), with varying melting points controlled by the length of the CL segments. When incorporated with gold nanoshells (GNS) and exposed to near-infrared (NIR) irradiation, matrices temporarily disengage, thus allowing efficient on-demand healing and drug release. The responsiveness of this system to light, with its tailorable physical and healing properties, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and the capability to incorporate drugs and on-demand drug release are all desirable traits for numerous clinical applications.