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Injectable and degradable PEG hydrogel was prepared via Michael-type addition between cross-linking monomer 4-arm-PEG-MAL and two cross-linkers of hydrolysis degradable PEG-diester-dithiol and non-degradable PEG-dithiol, and it had a porous structure with the uniform pore size. The biocompatibility assays in vitro indicated that PEG hydrogel had excellent biocompatibility and can be degraded naturally without leading to any negative impact on cells. The results of antibacterial experiments showed that PEG hydrogel can inhibit the growth of bacteria. Furthermore, the Cell Counting Kit-8 (CCK-8) assay, LIVE/DEAD cell staining, and scratch healing experiments proved that PEG hydrogel can promote cell proliferation and migration, which had been further confirmed in in vivo experiments on the rat wound models. All experimental results demonstrated that PEG hydrogel is an injectable antibacterial dressing, which can promote the process of wound healing and has great potential in the field of wound healing.

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Calcification of bioprosthetics is a primary challenge in the field of artificial heart valves and a main reason for biological heart valve prostheses failure. Recent advances in nanomaterial science have promoted the development of polymers with advantageous properties that are likely suitable for artificial heart valves. In this work, we developed a nanocomposite polymeric biomaterial POSS–PEG (polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane-polyethylene glycol) hybrid hydrogel, which not only has improved mechanical and surface properties but also excellent biocompatibility. The results of atomic force microscopy and in vivo animal experiments indicated that the content of POSS in the PEG matrix plays an important role on the surface and contributes to its biological properties, compared to the decellularized porcine aortic valve scaffold. Additionally, this modification leads to enhanced protection of the hydrogel from thrombosis. Furthermore, the introduction of POSS nanoparticles also gives the hydrogel a better calcification resistance efficacy, which was confirmed through in vitro tests and animal experiments. These findings indicate that POSS–PEG hybrid hydrogel is a potential material for functional heart valve prosthetics, and the use of POSS nanocomposites in artificial valves may offer potential long-term performance and durability advantages.