Bioinspired non-oriented bead-on-string starch-based nanofibrous membranes with immobilized halloysite nanotubes for...

Uncontrolled hemorrhage is one of the leading causes of traumatic death, while conventional clay hemostats carry insufficient procoagulant activity, poor adhesion, weak anti-dispersion capability, and the potential risk of distal thrombosis. Inspired by nasal cilia particle capture, poly(vinyl alcohol)/quaternized starch (PVA/QSt) nanofibrous membranes with Oriented (NFMO), Oriented bead-on-string (NFM-OB), Non-oriented bead-on-string (NFM-NOB), and Non-oriented (NFM-NO) four different structures, were fabricated by electrospinning in this study. The results showed that the random beaded nanofibrous membrane (NFM-NOB) exhibited the best hemostatic performance. Based on this structure, we then proposed an integrated "structure regulation-component synergy" strategy and fabricated halloysite nanotubes (HNTs)-reinforced PVA/quaternized starch (HPQ) nanofibrous membranes via in situ electrospinning. By regulating the HNTs content, a series of HPQ nanofibrous membranes were prepared. The optimal HPQ-40 achieved rapid hemostasis with an ultra-low particle loss rate of 1.2% (vs. 68.4% for QuikClot®) and 7.2 g/g blood absorption capacity. It achieved hemostasis through triple synergies: platelet capture by non-oriented, bead-on-string fibers via topological interlocking, rapid plasma absorption/intrinsic pathway activation by the hollow tubular structure of HNTs, and electrostatic erythrocyte aggregation/antibacterial activity by positively charged QSt. In rat liver laceration and femoral artery puncture models, HPQ-40 shortened hemostatic time by 52.9% and 58.9%, and reduced blood loss by 82.1% and 77.6%, respectively, with excellent biocompatibility. This study provides important experimental evidence and a new strategy for the design and developing high-performance biosafe hemostatic materials.