As expected, 24 hours after adding trypsin and inhibitors to the gel, AEBSF mixed with 0.1% trypsin prevents the degradation of the hydrogel (Figure ). At 24 hours after adding PAO1 supernatant with inhibitors, a slight degradation can be seen when AEBSF is used but not for EDTA. This observation suggests that metalloproteases could be responsible for the degradation of the hydrogels in the presence of PAO1 supernatant. The decrease in degradation rate in the presence of AEBSF can be explained by metalloproteases being pro enzymes and needing activation from other enzymes. If serine proteases are inhibited, they would not be able to activate the metalloproteases and secondary weaker activators must intervene. After 48 hours, P. aeruginosa PAO1 combined with AEBSF shows total degradation of the gel while PAO1 with EDTA does not, thus confirming that metalloenzymes are responsible for the degradation. A summary of the results from the protease inhibitors is shown in Figure .