Injectable drug-loaded polysaccharide hybrid hydrogels for hemostasis

An injectable hydrogel with high adhesion strength, non-toxicity and low cost is highly desired for developing highly efficient hemostasis. In this study, we developed a new type of injectable adhesive drug loaded hydrogel utilizing the formation of Schiff-base linkages based on carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC), gelatin (GEL) and oxidized alginate (OSA). By optimizing the concentration of the biopolymers, the hybrid hydrogel (CMC-GEL/OSA) demonstrated an extremely fast gelation rate (30 s) and adhesive strength of 11 kPa. The freeze-dried hydrogel showed a three-dimensional porous structure. The hydrogel loaded with levofloxacin exhibited good antibacterial properties. Hemostatic performance of the hydrogel was demonstrated in a rat liver injury model. Compared with the untreated wound, the hemostasis time of the hydrogel treated wound was shortened by 84.2% and the blood loss was reduced by 82.2%. Thus, the proposed injectable hydrogel holds great potential applications for hemostasis, drug delivery and in other biomedical fields.