Efficient hemostasis is a great challenge for treating the inaccessible hemorrhage wounds. A novel shape-memory chitin-glucan hemostatic sponge (ATC-Sponge) is constructed via sequentially in-situ removal of protein and glucan from Pleurotus eryngii fruiting body, TEMPO oxidation and Ca 2+ crosslinking. The sponge displays interconnected microporous structure with high water absorption and robust mechanical properties. The sponge at dry state shows rapid blood-triggered shape-memory, allowing easy insertion into the puncture wound in a compressed fixed-shape and the subsequent quick volume expansion to conform wound shape to stop bleeding. Compared with standard medical gauze and gelatin sponge, ATC-Sponge demonstrates superior hemostatic performance in the rat femoral artery and non-compressive liver puncture injury models. Additionally, ATC-Sponge can effectively accelerate wound healing. This multi-functional shape-memory ATC-Sponge shows high potential in controlling the bleeding of inaccessible traumas.
Uncontrolled hemorrhage poses a severe life-threatening situation. However, traditional hemostats still have various limitations. It is urgent to develop a material with excellent biocompatibility and hemostatic ability. Evidence has shown that carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) has hemostatic properties and good compatibility. Herein, we develop an expandable hemostatic sponge by modifying CMCS with cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) through the CO-NH cross-linking method. We verified its potential as a hemostatic agent both in vivo and in vitro . The results demonstrated that the prepared carboxymethyl chitosan/cellulose nanofiber composite (CNF-CMCS) sponges could absorb blood, quickly expand to exert pressure in the wound, and exhibit an excellent coagulation ability. The CNF-CMCS sponges significantly decreased the bleeding time and blood loss in several hemorrhage models and possessed a significant advantage in treating the deep penetrating injury hemorrhage. Therefore, the sponges provide a unique application prospect and potential as a penetrating trauma hemostatic agent.