Nanofiber membrane prepared from a marine organism-based material cuttlebone combined with gelatin for rapid hemostasis

Cuttlebone as a hemostatic traditional Chinese medicine is usually applied in powder directly to the wound for hemostasis. In order to improve the hemostatic utility of cuttlebone, gelatin/cuttlebone (Gel/Cb) membranes with different Gel/Cb ratios were fabricated through electrospinning and characterized by scanning electron microscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction. The hemostatic effect and coagulation process of Gel/Cb electrospun membranes were evaluated in vitro by dynamic whole-blood coagulation test, in vitro hemolysis test, determination of clotting time, and platelet adhesion test and in vivo by liver and tail vein hemostasis models. It was noted that the addition of cuttlebone could significantly decrease the hemolysis rates of Gel/Cb electrospun membranes, which was only about one-sixth of the Gel electrospun membrane. The animal experiments demonstrated effective reduction in bleeding time and volume in Gel/Cb-treated mice. Specially, compared with the commercially available gauze group. Gel/Cb (7:3) electrospun membrane reduced the clotting time by 80.92% and the average bleeding volume by 50.83%. The results further indicated that Gel/Cb electrospun membranes could accelerate coagulation, possibly via the coagulation pathway activation to stimulate platelet contraction and rapid aggregation at the wound surface, providing a new method for rapid hemostasis of acute trauma. Graphical Abstract