Ferric tannate-functionalized hierarchical porous materials for hemostatic antibacterial non-compressible bleeding

Abstract

Uncontrolled non-compressible hemorrhage remains a leading cause of preventable death in trauma care, underscoring the urgent need for novel hemostatic materials capable of rapid bleeding control and infection prevention under complex physiological conditions. Herein, we report the design of an injectable, water-responsive shape-memory sponge, fabricated via a dual-template strategy incorporating in situ-generated ferric tannate (TA–Fe) as a multifunctional component. The resulting hierarchically porous architecture exhibits excellent mechanical resilience, rapid shape recovery (∼6 s), and high blood uptake capacity (>4600%), enabling immediate sealing of irregular wounds. Beyond its physical hemostatic performance, TA–Fe endows the sponge with robust antibacterial activity (>99.9%), achieved through synergistic membrane disruption by phenolic hydroxyl groups, ferric ions, and photothermal effects. Moreover, TA–Fe facilitates platelet activation and fibrin network formation independent of the classical coagulation cascade, promoting accelerated thrombus formation at the bleeding site. In vivo studies using liver and arterial injury models demonstrate that PTHPFe reduces blood loss by 86% and shortens hemostatic time by 87% compared to untreated controls, significantly outperforming clinically used gelatin sponges. This hierarchically porous, shape-adaptive biomaterial offers a promising platform for next-generation hemostatic interventions, combining rapid hemorrhage control, antibacterial protection, and injectable minimal invasiveness for application in high-risk, non-compressible trauma scenarios.