Aldehyde-mediated carboxymethylcellulose/gelatin-based injectable dual network hydrogel with antimicrobial and adhesion properties for rapid hemostasis and wound repair.

Rapid hemostasis of irregular or non-compressible wounds remains a critical challenge. Existing hemostatic agents typically lack the required adhesion, antimicrobial, and rapid hemostatic properties. In this study, an injectable dual-crosslinked hemostatic hydrogel with antibacterial and adhesive properties (DCG-EDC) was designed by carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and gelatin (Gel) as raw materials. CMC was oxidized to produce oxidized carboxymethyl cellulose (DCMC) with aldehyde groups. DCG-EDC hydrogel was constructed using DCMC and Gel via Schiff reaction and amide reaction, and this unique dual-network structure confers faster gelation time (8 ± 2 s), enhanced adhesion strength and superior antimicrobial performance. In vitro experiments confirmed the ability to accelerate coagulation by activating endogenous pathways. In vivo experiments showed that DCG-EDC hydrogel significantly reduced hemostasis time and blood loss in liver injury model (69.79 ± 8.33 s, 15.34 ± 2.44 mg) and tail amputation model (80.41 ± 10.34 s, 18.67 ± 2.15 mg). In addition, DCG-EDC hydrogel promotes fibroblast migration which also obviously accelerates the healing of bacterial infections. Therefore, this multifunctional dual-crosslinked DCG-EDC hydrogel holds great promise as candidate material for managing complex bleeding wounds and promoting repair.