Smart supramolecular materials have gained popularity
for a range
of applications, including sensing, drug delivery, and tissue engineering.
In this work, we describe a “host–guest” supramolecular
hydrogel formulated with a bifunctional guest complex. Polymeric cyclodextrin
(PCD) was utilized as the host backbone of the hydrogel, which was
reinforced with an interpenetrating network polymerized by acrylamide/N-vinylpyrrolidinone. The guest molecule developed here
was designed to not only enable molecular association with PCD, imparting
hydrogels with a self-healing capability, but also undergo enzymatic
cleavage, causing macroscale degradation of the hydrogel. This dual
functional behavior was obtained by incorporation of two adamantane
(AD) moieties on the guest, which form cross-links between the PCD
hydrophobic cavities and a β-lactam core, which is cleaved by
bacteria produced β-lactamases (βLs). The supramolecular
host–guest hydrogels underwent self-healing upon severing and
were able to regain an initial tensile modulus comparable to that
of the as-formed hydrogels within ∼20 h. The hydrogels were
also found to remain stable at simulated physiological conditions
(phosphate buffered saline, pH 7.4, 37 °C) and degrade specifically
in the presence of βLs from Bacillus cereus and Enterobacter cloacae over 28–35 h. Hydrogels
with a protecting group attached to a common βL recognition
site on the guest exhibited a significantly slower degradation, confirming
that hydrogel degradation is specific to βL cleavage of the
guest molecule. This βL responsive degradation was translated
to bacteria, resulting in complete degradation of hydrogels incubated
with cultures of βL producing bacteria in approximately 72 h,
while those incubated with non-βL producing bacteria remained
stable over this time. The supramolecular host–guest hydrogels
developed here are promising for future applications of bacteria-responsive
materials, including controlled drug delivery and diagnostics, in
which a robust material capable of self-healing is desirable.