Homogeneous “Hard‐Soft” Biphasic Bone Adhesives Promote Comminuted Fracture Healing through Interfacial Adaptation and Mechanical Property Maintenance

C Chuanwei Zhou (Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering East China University of Science and Technology Shanghai 200237 P. R. China) C Chenyu Liu (Department of Oncology, Beijing Shijitan Hospital, Capital Medical University) D Dongyong Sha (Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering East China University of Science and Technology Shanghai 200237 P. R. China) L Lili Sun (Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology) C Changsheng Liu (School of Materials Science and Engineering, Engineering Research Center for Biomedical Materials of the Ministry of Education, East China University of Science and Technology) Y Yuan Yuan

Abstract

Abstract Bone adhesives provide remarkable clinical solutions in treating highly comminuted fractures that are difficult to perform surgery with metal fixation. However, no commercial bone adhesives exhibit high adhesion, strength, and osteogenic activity for instant and sustainable fixation in dynamic, wet humoral environments at weight‐bearing sites. Here, phase engineering is employed to construct a homogeneous hard‐soft biphasic bone adhesive (HB‐PTN) with a sea urchin‐inspired structure of phosphorylated polyglutamic acid (P‐PGA) encapsulating tetracalcium phosphate (TTCP) (hard phase) and a viscoelastic hydrogel composed of amino‐functionalized PEGylated poly (glycerol sebacate) (PEGS‐NH 2 ) and P‐PGA (soft phases) for immediate, stable fixation. The adhesion and strength of the HB‐PTN hydrogel can be tuned by modulating the soft phase/hard phase ratio. The PTN‐2 hydrogel exhibited an adhesive strength of ≈280 kPa, a compressive modulus of ≈1.02 MPa, and high fatigue resistance (92%). Moreover, the PTN‐2 hydrogel showed limited swelling (130%) and maintained mechanical properties (102%) after immersion in simulated human body fluid. Furthermore, this strategy avoids the agglomeration of inorganic particles and the formation of cracks due to stress concentration observed with traditional mixing methods. In vivo, the PTN adhesives reveal durable and stable adhesion and accelerate fracture healing, demonstrating great clinical potential in comminuted fracture repair.

Article Details

Volume / Issue Vol. 37, Issue 34
Published August 01, 2025
ISSN 0935-9648
Publisher Unknown Publisher

Journal Info

Advanced Materials

Unknown Publisher

ISSN: 0935-9648 Physical Sciences

Authors (6)

C

Chuanwei Zhou

Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering East China University of Science and Technology Shanghai 200237 P. R. China

C

Chenyu Liu

Department of Oncology, Beijing Shijitan Hospital, Capital Medical University

D

Dongyong Sha

Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering East China University of Science and Technology Shanghai 200237 P. R. China

L

Lili Sun

Key Laboratory for Ultrafine Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Materials Science and Engineering, East China University of Science and Technology

C

Changsheng Liu

School of Materials Science and Engineering, Engineering Research Center for Biomedical Materials of the Ministry of Education, East China University of Science and Technology

Y

Yuan Yuan