A Topological Stitching Strategy for Biocompatible Wet Adhesion Using Mussel‐Inspired Polyurethane

Abstract

The biomedical and surgical applications of hydrogels demand effective methods to adhere hydrogels to diverse substrates including living tissues. Here a mussel mimetic polyurethane as topological suture material for tough adhesion of hydrogels by introducing catechol moieties into polymer chains is presented. Solution of the stitching polyurethane can be injected onto the surface of a hydrogel, followed by diffusing spontaneously into the hydrogel, then get triggered by oxidant for in situ gelation. Oxidative cross‐linkage of catechol‐modified polyurethane after penetration into hydrogels or living tissues can establish enough covalently entangled networks to afford desired adhesion strength. The mussel mimetic polyurethane demonstrates excellent adhesion strength of hydrogels to versatile substrates including inorganics, polymers, and biomaterials, with no requirements for specific functional groups or chemical modification. The adhesion energy achieved by the topological stitching strategy can reach up to 350 J m−2. Moreover, the stitching polymer shows potential for debonding under the catalysis of elastase. This work will possibly become a promising strategy candidate for adhesion in wet environments.

Ultrastrong bonding, on-demand debonding, and easy re-bonding of non-sticking materials enabled by reversibly interlocked macromolecular networks-based Janus-like adhesive

“…S17a (ESI †), the average peeling strength of SN-PA to glass reaches 33.87 N cm À1 , which surpasses other room-temperature adhesives for glass. [51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58] The failure takes place inside SN-PA rather than at the interface with the glass and the failure surfaces are full of microfibrils (Fig. S18a, ESI †).…”

Supramolecular topological hydrogels: from material design to applications

“…8B). 95 The key to this adhesion strategy was the use of catechol-modified stitching polymers, which can either form topological entanglements with the hydrogel network or directly bind to substrates through catechol chemistry. The results showed that the obtained mussel-like polyurethane possesses the adhesion strength of the hydrogels with universal substrates both in organics and polymers, and no need for specific functional groups or chemical modifications.…”

Human hand-inspired all-hydrogel gripper with a high load capacity formed by the split-brushing adhesion of diverse hydrogels

“…[31][32][33][34][35] The second approach does not require specific functional groups and can generally be applicable to diverse hydrogels. [36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44] However, due to the limited diffusion of stitching polymer networks in such dense hydrogels, this method may not be applicable to dense hydrogels. 36,39,[41][42][43][44] In this work, we demonstrate a human hand-inspired allhydrogel gripper with a high load capacity.…”

“…[36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43][44] However, due to the limited diffusion of stitching polymer networks in such dense hydrogels, this method may not be applicable to dense hydrogels. 36,39,[41][42][43][44] In this work, we demonstrate a human hand-inspired allhydrogel gripper with a high load capacity. This gripper is made of three materials, each corresponding to the bone, cartilage, and flexor tendon of the human hand.…”