Gels 2015, 1, 162-178; doi:10.3390/gels1020162 OPEN ACCESS gels ISSN 2310-2861 www.mdpi.com/journal/gels Review Nanoparticle-Integrated Hydrogels as Multifunctional Composite Materials for Biomedical Applications Marco Biondi 1,†, Assunta Borzacchiello 2,†,*, Laura Mayol 1 and Luigi Ambrosio 2,3 1 Dipartimento di Farmacia, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via D. Montesano 49, 80131 Napoli, Italy; E-Mails:
[email protected] (M.B.);
[email protected] (L.M.) 2 Istituto per i Polimeri Compositi e Biomateriali (IPCB-CNR), P.le Tecchio 80, 80125 Napoli, Italy; E-Mail:
[email protected] 3 Dipartimento Scienze Chimiche e Tecnologie dei Materiali (DSCTM-CNR), P.le Aldo Moro 7, 00185 Roma, Italy † These authors contributed equally to this work. * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail:
[email protected]; Tel.: +39-081-242-5933; Fax: +39-081-242-5932. Academic Editor: Rolando Barbucci Received: 3 July 2015 / Accepted: 28 September 2015 / Published: 14 October 2015 Abstract: This review focuses on the most recent developments in the field of nanocomposite hydrogels intended for biomedical applications. Nanocomposite hydrogels are hydrated polymeric networks with a physically or covalently crosslinked three-dimensional (3D) structure swollen with water, in the presence of nanoparticles or nanostructures. A wide array of nanomaterials (polymeric, carbon-based, metallic, ceramic) can be incorporated within the hydrogel network to obtain reinforced nanocomposite hydrogels. Nanocomposites represent a new class of materials with properties absent in the individual components. In particular, the incorporation of nanomaterials within a polymeric hydrogel network is an attractive approach to tailor the mechanical properties of the hydrogels and/or to provide the nanocomposite with responsiveness to external stimuli.