Tunicate-mimetic nanofibrous hydrogel adhesive with improved wet adhesion. (1st July 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Oh, Dongyeop X.; Kim, Sangsik; Lee, Dohoon; Hwang, Dong Soo
• Is Part Of: Acta biomaterialia. Volume 20(2015)
• Page Start: 104
• Page End: 112
• Publication Date: 2015-07-01
• Subjects: Tunicates -- Underwater adhesives -- Chitin nanofibers -- Pyrogallol -- Nanofibrous hydrogels; Biomedical materials -- Periodicals; 610.28
• DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2015.03.031
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1742-7061

Abstract

Graphical abstract: Abstract: The main impediment to medical application of biomaterial-based adhesives is their poor wet adhesion strength due to hydration-induced softening and dissolution. To solve this problem, we mimicked the wound healing process found in tunicates, which use a nanofiber structure and pyrogallol group to heal any damage on its tunic under sea water. We fabricated a tunicate-mimetic hydrogel adhesive based on a chitin nanofiber/gallic acid (a pyrogallol acid) composite. The pyrogallol group-mediated cross-linking and the nanofibrous structures improved the dissolution resistance and cohesion strength of the hydrogel compared to the amorphous polymeric hydrogels in wet condition. The tunicate-mimetic adhesives showed higher adhesion strength between fully hydrated skin tissues than did fibrin glue and mussel-mimetic adhesives. The tunicate mimetic hydrogels were produced at low cost from recyclable and abundant raw materials. This tunicate-mimetic adhesive system is an example of how natural materials can be engineered for biomedical applications.