Enhanced adhesive hydrogel for emergency hemostasis by balancing adhesion and cohesion

Abstract

Hydrogel adhesives have broad application prospects in biomedical fields such as tissue engineering and emergency rescue. However, due to the high water content and defective network structure, their inherent mechanical strength is low, which seriously hinders their application. In the present work, enhanced adhesive hydrogels could be synthesized by balancing cohesion and adhesion forces. The adhesive hydrogel composed of acryloyl aspartic acid and glycine shows a more dense mesh structure through intermolecular hydrogen bond interactions. As a result, the adhesive hydrogel exhibits enhanced tissue adhesion strength, which benefit from the balance between cohesion and adhesion.

Keywords: Adhesion; Cohesion; Hemostasis; Hydrogel.