The hydrogel bio‐adhesive has demonstrated outstanding potential in regenerative wound care. Here, we prepared borate‐crosslinked bioadhesive hydrogels (PPGB) composed of dopamine‐conjugated gelatin (Gel‐DA), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and catechin acid. Scanning electron microscopy revealed an interconnected porous microstructure within the PPGB matrix. Rheological characterization confirmed typical viscoelastic solid behavior, favorable injectability, and excellent self‐healing capability, the latter of which was also supported by macroscopic observations. Antioxidant activity was validated through ABTS and DPPH radical scavenging assays. The PPGB adhesives exhibited strong adhesion to various material surfaces and moist organic tissues. Antibacterial testing demonstrated efficient activity against the typical Gram‐positive and Gram‐negative bacteria. Biocompatibility evaluation using CCK‐8 assays and DAPI/phalloidin staining of NIH 3 T3 fibroblasts exposed to hydrogel extracts indicated good cytocompatibility. Furthermore, a scratch wound healing assay confirmed enhanced cell migration. Collectively, these findings present a straightforward strategy for engineering multifunctional hydrogel bio‐adhesives with potential for biomedical applications.
Lei Nie, Letian Yan, Yaling Deng et al.· Polymer Engineering & Sc...· 0 citations
Background/Objectives: Tissue bio-adhesives have gained significant attention as efficient alternatives to conventional wound closures, which are often hindered by insufficient adhesion and poor biocompatibility. Methods: Inspired by nature’s robust wet-adhesion strategies that use dynamic covalent interactions, we have reported a facilely fabricated hydrogel bio-adhesive based on lactobionic acid-conjugated polyethylenimine (LA-PEI) and oxidized dextran (ODex) via Schiff base linkages. Results: The prepared hydrogels exhibited three-dimensional interconnected porous networks, regulated swelling ratios, typical viscoelasticity, shear-thinning behavior, and self-healing ability. Notably, the swelling ratios of the hydrogels depended on composition, and OLP11 displayed the highest swelling ratio of over 1500%. The hydrogel bio-adhesives exhibited strong adhesion to various surfaces, including glass, metal, plastic, rubber, and wood, as well as to different chicken organs, including the heart, liver, spleen, and stomach. Furthermore, the hydrogels exhibited excellent ABTS radical-scavenging activity, effective intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging, and good hemocompatibility, with hemolysis ratios of all hydrogels close to 0%, below the threshold of 5%. After culturing with NIH 3T3 fibroblasts, the hydrogels demonstrated good cytocompatibility and promoted cell proliferation, with cell viabilities on day 3 reaching over 90%. Conclusions: This design yields multifunctional hydrogel bio-adhesives, showing strong promise for wound care and tissue repair applications.
Lei Nie, Xiao-Ran Hu, Shichang Cheng et al.· Pharmaceutics· 0 citations
Given the urgent need to regulate oxidative stress microenvironments in chronic wound healing, hydrogel dressings that simultaneously integrate antioxidant, antibacterial, mechanically adaptive, and biocompatible properties are highly desirable. In this study, a natural polymer-based composite hydrogel dressing loaded with zinc-quercetin nanozyme (Zn-Q) was designed. The gel skeleton was constructed via a dual network of photocrosslinked methacrylated silk fibroin (SilMA) and mercaptolated hyaluronic acid (HA-SH) via thiol-ene click chemistry, with the catalase (CAT)-like Zn-Q nanozyme encapsulated in situ within the network, thereby achieving synergy between chemical crosslinking and dynamic metal-polyphenol coordination. Systematic characterization revealed that Zn-Q nanozyme adopted a stable octahedral coordination configuration, and its continuous porous structure exposed abundant catalytically active sites. The composite hydrogels exhibited a highly interconnected, three-dimensional (3D) porous morphology, with swelling ratios that increased significantly with Zn-Q nanozyme content (up to around 1082%). Rheological and mechanical tests demonstrated that although incorporating the nanozyme reduced the storage modulus, the reversible physical crosslinks formed via hydrogen bonding and coordination interactions endowed the material with excellent tensile toughness and energy-dissipation capacity, exhibiting typical Mullins softening behavior. Functional evaluation showed that Zn-Q nanozyme conferred superior free radical scavenging capability to the hydrogels and exerted dose-dependent inhibition against both Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Furthermore, the hydrogels exhibited favorable adhesion to various wet organs and heterogeneous material surfaces, with hemolysis rates below 5% and cell viability exceeding 100% after 3 days of culturing with fibroblasts, confirming their excellent hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility. This study provides an experimental basis for developing a new type of wound repair materials that integrate antioxidant, anti-infective, and mechanically adaptive properties, holding significant application potential in oxidative stress-related tissue repair fields.
Lei Nie, Xinran Li, Ru-Qiang Gong et al.· Gels· 0 citations
Impaired healing of chronic wounds typically stems from persistent oxidative stress, bacterial infection, and cellular dysfunction. Designing a multifunctional hydrogel dressing capable of adhesion, antioxidant activity, antibacterial ability, and cytocompatibility has demonstrated potential in wound healing applications. In this study, HTP composite hydrogels were fabricated based on thiolated chitosan (TCS) and methacrylated hyaluronic acid (HAMA) by incorporating polyethylene glycol diacrylate (PEGDA) and gelatin via the synergistic crosslinking of thiol-Michael addition and free-radical photopolymerization. Comprehensive characterization revealed that the hydrogel possessed an interconnected porous microstructure, appropriate swelling properties, and controllable degradation profiles, accompanied by pronounced shear-thinning behavior and tissue-adhesive capabilities. The obtained hydrogels demonstrated significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. Furthermore, the HTP hydrogels exhibited remarkable antioxidant capacity, scavenging DPPH and ABTS radicals. Additionally, the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging ability was validated using NIH-3 T3 cells. Hemolysis assays and cytocompatibility evaluations confirmed the favorable hemocompatibility of the HTP hydrogels, which significantly promoted fibroblast proliferation and migration, indicating their substantial potential for wound healing applications.
Lei Nie, Xinran Li, Mengfei Feng et al.· International Journal of Bio...· 0 citations