Hemostatic Swabs Containing Polydopamine-like Catecholamine Chitosan-Catechol for Normal and Coagulopathic Animal Models

All animal experiments for evaluating drug efficacy or developing medical devices are unavoidably accompanied by bleeding that result in unreliable outcomes with large variations between individuals. Herein, we developed hemostatic swabs prepared by a mussel-inspired catecholamine polymer called chitosan-catechol, which was inspired by the chemical composition of the well-known material-independent coating material of polydopamine. The hemostatic ability of the swabs resulted from the formation of self-sealing membranes by rapid intermolecular interactions between whole blood proteins and the applied chitosan-catechol. The blood protein/chitosan-catechol composite sealing membrane resulted in dramatic decreases in bleeding for both normal and coagulopathic models, such as diabetes.