A Natural Self-Assembled Gel-Sponge with Hierarchical Porous Structure for Rapid Hemostasis and Antibacterial

Developing hemostatic agents with reliable biosafety and high efficiency has paramount clinical significance for saving lives. Herein, inspired from traditional Chinese medicine, a sponge (BC-S) with hierarchical porous structure is proposed for the treatment of bleeding. The BC-S is prepared by a simple self-assembly method employing Bletilla Striata polysaccharide and quaternary amine alkaloids (QA) from Bletilla Striata and Coptidis Rhizoma. The ideal cation donor encapsulated in the helical structure of BSP enlarges the inter-layer space of sponge by the action of electrostatic repulsion, forming wider channels which can accelerate the diversion speed of absorbed blood. Then, platelets and erythrocytes are trapped tightly in the reticular structure and extruded to deformation, activation. Subsequently, fibrin network forms and reinforces the internal multilayer mesh, blocks the outflow of blood. QA is released from the sponge skeleton mainly driven by a combination of surface erosion and potentially solution diffusion among pore to provide long-term antibacterial activity. Benefiting from the well-designed structure and the effective hemostatic mechanism, the BC-S displays more excellent hemostatic performance in different models in vivo and in vitro compared with typical gelatin hemostatic sponge. This work is expected to boost the development of emerging hemostatic agents.