Key points are not available for this paper at this time.
Developing robust wet tissue adhesives remains challenging due to interfacial water and irregular surfaces. While polyelectrolyte coacervates demonstrate promising hydrophobic/fluidic properties for wet adhesion, their low cohesion limits practical applications. Herein, a wet tissue bioadhesive based on coacervates formed from low- molecular-weight methacrylated chitosan (CSMA) and hyaluronic acid (HA) is reported. These homogeneous and transparent coacervates displayed high solid content (∼18.0%), fluidity (∼10 5 mPa·s), and tunable mechanical properties. Upon application to wet tissue surfaces, the coacervate can be photo-cross-linked to form a double-network hydrogel in situ, resulting in improved cohesion and durable adhesion. The resulting CSMA-HA hydrogel demonstrated robust adhesion to tissues, with a bursting pressure of 374 mmHg. Remarkably, the bursting pressure can be further enhanced (∼623 mmHg) after 24 h of PBS immersion due to dynamic bond reorganization and low swelling. The demonstrated stability under physiological conditions and robust wet adhesion position CSMA-HA coacervates as a transformative platform for tissue adhesive applications.
Deng et al. (Tue,) studied this question.