A blue light 3D printable hydrogel with water absorption, antibacterial, and hemostatic properties for skin wound healing

Abstract

3D printing hydrogels are widely used in biomedicine because of their unique flexibility, water richness, biocompatibility, and most importantly, the ability to manufacture customized complex structures. Among the various 3D printing technologies for hydrogels, Digital Light Processing (DLP) is advantageous due to its fast speed and high precision. However, the high-energy ultraviolet (UV) light used in most DLP can damage the bio-materials, which limits their application in biomedicine. Herein, by introduction of multiple strengthening mechanisms (nanofibers, hydrogen bonds and coordination bonds) and double photo-initiators, we designed a 2-acrylamide-2-methyl-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS)-based hydrogel, which can be manufactured into various high-precision structures through 3D printing with blue light (450 nm). The printed hydrogel has good mechanical properties, high water absorption capacity, and strong water retention property. Vitro and in vivo experiments revealed that the printed hydrogels show excellent biocompatibility, hemostasis effect and antibacterial properties. We further expand the application of 3D printing in the field of precision medicine. The use of 3D printed hydrogels can achieve accurate fitting and wound repair according to the structure of the patient’s wound, providing better curative effect to the patient.