Development of Degradable Fibers with Hemostatic Properties

PROJECT SUMMARY Recent evolutions in the field of hemostatic materials have focused on developing products with high hemostatic efficiency. An ideal hemostatic material should quickly control hemorrhaging, exhibit biocompatibility and degradability, promote wound healing and be lightweight and inexpensive. Electrospinning degradable macromolecules like collagen, chitosan, polycaprolactone yields nanofiber which have shown promise in wound healing and bleeding cessation applications. Modern bleeding cessation treatments should have degradable and regenerative capabilities but little research has been published on the utilization of synthetic analogs to costly biomolecules. The long-term goal of this project is to generate a better understanding of polymer-based hemostatic wound healing materials and cellular responses towards these materials for implementation in regenerative treatments. As a step towards this goal, a degradable collagen strand analog must be synthesized, electrospun, and compared to other scaffolds for in vitro and in vivo evaluation. It is hypothesized that a biomimetic synthetic polymer can be electrospun into an affordable, biocompatible, degradable, hemostatic wound dressing material that will not only catalyze coagulation but also will not require surgical removal. This proposal is significant because it represents the first attempt to incorporate a polyester-based collagen mimic into electrospun scaffolds with the ability to control scaffold composition to combine desired properties and functionalities in an ideal material for wound healing and hemostatic applications. This approach is innovative because it will determine the feasibility of utilizing a synthetic collagen mimic in applications such as electrospun wound healing and bleeding cessation materials. It is anticipated that the collagen-like functional groups on the novel polyester coupled with the presence of chitosan in the fibers will lead to bleeding cessation in wound models with suitable degradation rates. Furthermore, undergraduate students will conduct the majority of the research in this proposal. This will be a significant research experience for these students and will provide them with valuable laboratory and research skills that will be essential in their careers.