I want to check the cytotoxic effect of my hydrogels. Before conducting the experiment, in literature it has been reported that to wash the hydrogels with ethanol and then PBS thrice to remove the ethanol and then sterilize under UV for 1 or 2 h.
Does UV has any effect on the cross-linking of the hydrogels? Is it good practice to UV the samples before using them in the cell culturing experiment?
If there are materials and bonds sensitive to UV, using UV for a long time can cause damage to the structure. Even in the absence of these bonds, applying UV light while you have a wet hydrogel will lead to the production of free radicals. To solve this problem, freeze-dry the hydrogel and sterilize it with ethanol for two days. You can use antibiotics at this stage. After drying under the laminar hood, expose it to UV light for 20 minutes. Both sides of the sample should be sterilized for 20 minutes (40 minutes in total). Then put the hydrogel in sterile distilled water to reach equilibrium swelling. Then use it to test for cytotoxicity.
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