Time Programmable Hydrogels: Regulating the Onset Time of Network Dissociation by a Reaction Relay

Biological networks are capable of programming temporal evolution of their crosslinking and dissociation reactions. However, replicating this feature in synthetic self-assemblies is challenging. Herein we report the design of dynamic polymeric hydrogels that undergo delayed dissociation with an onset time precisely tuned from minutes to hours by a reaction relay.