Sprayable, antioxidative, in situ-forming hydrogel bio-adhesives based on dopamine conjugated 2-aminoethylmethacrylate alginate with incorporating curcumin-loaded micelles

An asymmetric adhesive hydrogel is developed. • The sprayable and biodegradable hydrogel possesses antibacterial and antioxidant properties. • The hydrogel possesses excellent hemocompatibility and cytocompatibility, and can promote cell migration. Injectable hydrogel adhesives with asymmetric adhesion properties are of great significance in reducing the risk of postoperative tissue adhesion. In this study, a sprayable, in situ–forming hydrogel was synthesized by grafting 2-aminoethyl methacrylate (AEMA) and dopamine (DA) onto a sodium alginate (SA) backbone, followed by loading curcumin-PF127 micelles (Cur-PF127) and ultraviolet (UV)- initiated free-radical crosslinking. The prepared hydrogel exhibited porous microstructure, sprayability, degradability, and suitable swelling properties (>1000%). Rheological analysis revealed that the hydrogel exhibited stable storage and loss moduli. In addition, the hydrogel exhibited good adhesion to diverse substrates, including glass, rubber, plastic, porcine skin, and various mouse organs (liver, lung, stomach, spleen, kidney, and heart). Notably, the adhesive performance of the hydrogel could be reduced after UV exposure, enabling controllable adhesion behavior. Furthermore, the hydrogel exhibited antibacterial efficacy against Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) and Staphylococcus aureus ( S. aureus ), potent antioxidant activity (scavenging over 80% of free radicals), and good in vitro cytocompatibility, as validated by the CCK-8 assay, cell staining, the cell scratch test, and hemocompatibility analysis. Owing to its combination of controllable adhesion, sprayability, antioxidant and antibacterial properties, and cytocompatibility, this hydrogel shows potential as a multifunctional biomedical adhesive. Download: Download high-res image (134KB) Download: Download full-size image