Abstract
Strategic delivery of hydrogels to the newly formed myocardial infarction (MI) is an area of active investigation and offers high target specificity for releasing a small molecule therapeutic payload. This study examined the effects of delayed post-MI delivery (pigs, 3 days post-MI) of a shear-thinning hydrogel which encapsulated and released a small molecule matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor. The results demonstrated the feasibility and efficacy of targeted delivery of a shear-thinning injectable hydrogel containing a small molecule matrix metalloproteinase inhibitor to attenuate post-MI remodeling.