A 4D Printed Adhesive, Thermo-Contractile, and Degradable Hydrogel for Diabetic Wound Healing

Chronic wound healing remains a substantial clinical challenge. Current treatments are often either prohibitively expensive or insufficient in meeting the various requirements needed for effective diabetic wound healing. A 4D printing multifunctional hydrogel dressing is reported here, which aligns perfectly with wounds owning various complex shapes and depths, promoting both wound closure and tissue regeneration. The hydrogel is prepared via digital light process (DLP) 3D printing of the mixture containing N-isopropylacrylamide (NIPAm), curcumin-loaded Pluronic F127 micelles (Cur-PF127), and poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate-dopamine (PEGDA575-Do), a degradable crosslinker. The use of PEGDA575-Do ensures tissue adhesion and degradability, and cur-PF127 serves as an antibacterial agent. Moreover, the thermo-responsive mainchains (i.e., polymerized NIPAm) enables the activation of wound contraction by body temperature. The features of the prepared hydrogel, including robust tissue adhesion, temperature-responsive contraction, effective hemostasis, spectral antibacterial, biocompatibility, biodegradability, and inflammation regulation, contribute to accelerating diabetic wound healing in Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-infected full-thickness skin defect diabetic rat models and liver injury mouse models, highlighting the potential of this customizable, mechanobiological, and inflammation-regulatory dressing to expedite wound healing in various clinical settings.