Biomimetic poly(thioctic acid)-based bioadhesive hydrogels for wet adhesion, expeditious hemostasis and enhanced wound healing.

The bioadhesive hydrogels have been viewed as promising substitutes for surgical sutures in wound closure. However, current bioadhesives face challenges such as weak wet adhesion and hemostatic performance, which hinder their wider clinical application. In this study, a novel poly(thioctic acid)Li/caffeic acid-grafted sericin (CAS) (PTALi-CAS) supramolecular hydrogel was prepared using facile one-pot method. Among the PTALi-CAS hydrogels with varying CAS content, the PTALi-7%CAS hydrogels exhibited the highest adhesion strength (32.02 ± 2.28 kPa) and could adhere on surfaces of various organs in moist environments. It is noteworthy that the microstructure of the PTALi-7%CAS hydrogels after stretching closely resemble those of mussel byssal adhesion proteins. Additionally, the PTALi-7%CAS hydrogels exhibited rapid hemostatic properties in rat hemorrhage models and significantly accelerated the wound healing in rat skin incision experiments. Therefore, this study proposes a promising approach for developing a versatile hydrogel to aid in healing traumatic wounds.