Wound healing is a complex biological process, and the use of wound dressings is an effective adjunct to promote skin repair or tissue healing due to the limitations of skin self-healing. In this study, we constructed interpenetrating polymer network (IPN) hydrogels with HClO/ClO– indicative and biocompatible properties by combining sodium alginate (SA) and cross-linking RhB-AC. This hydrogel can also be used as a drug scaffold for controlled drug release. A significant fluorescence change was observed when hypochlorous acid was added to the hydrogel in vitro, which confirmed that the IPN hydrogel was able to indicate and consume a certain amount of hypochlorous acid. Subsequent cell culture and toxicity tests confirmed the good biocompatibility of the IPN hydrogel. When the hydrogel was used for wound healing in vivo, both the material itself and the hydrogel drug scaffold exhibited excellent wound healing effects. The present IPN hydrogels may be excellent candidates as hypochlorous acid consuming and biocompatible materials for wound dressing applications.

Aggregation-induced emission/aggregation-induced emission enhancement (AIE/AIEE) has recently attracted intense research, and a large number of AIE/AIEE luminogens (AIE/AIEEgens) have been constructed for application in diverse scientific fields. The AIE and AIEE effects have similar, but not identical, photophysical behaviors, which are closely related to molecular architectures. However, the current understanding of the inherent differences between AIE and AIEE is still obscure. Herein, a rational design strategy is reported for achieving AIE and AIEE effects by simply incorporating different substituents at the periphery of the same core skeleton. Experimental and theoretical studies on the series of compounds indicated that the restriction of intramolecular twisting motions or/and rotations plays an important role in regard to the corresponding AIE or AIEE behaviors. Moreover, compound 1 a (FW=203, Φ =80.9 %) was discovered as the lowest molecular weight AIEEgen with a high quantum yield in the solid state despite having no rotatable units. Compound 2 a also exhibited an AIEE effect with the minimum necessary structure (a single ring).

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