The invention provides compositions featuring chitosan and polyethylene glycol and methods for using such compositions for the local delivery of biologically active agents to an open fracture, complex wound or other site of infection. Advantageously, the chitosan-PEG compositions can be loaded with one or more antimicrobial agents, including hydrophobic agents, and can be tailored to the needs of particular patients at the point of care (e.g., in a surgical suite, clinic, physician's office, or other clinical setting).

The present invention relate to three dimensional porous polysaccharide matrices able to induce mineralisation of a tissue in osseous site, as well as in non-osseous site, in the absence of stent cells or growth factors.

Mechanically strong, biodegradable and reusable aerogels are disclosed, which can be made with a cross-linked cellulose ester, and which exhibit a low density and high porosity. The aerogels disclosed herein may be used as sorbent materials and can be modified with a hydrophobic and/or oleophilic agent.

A method of manufacturing a thermally insulating product comprises: (a) forming a mixture comprising solvent and gel network former and optionally foaming agent; (b) dispersing a thermally insulating filler in the mixture; and (c) drying the mixture to form the thermally insulating product.

The present invention relates to a polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel having an asymmetric pore size. the pore size of the upper surface of the polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel is 1-30 μm, the pore size of lower surface thereof is 50-300 μm, and the pore size of the hydrogel gradually increases from the upper surface to the lower surface. The polyvinyl alcohol hydrogel in the present invention has excellent biocompatibility, and has functions of blocking bacteria, anti-adhesion, the absorption of exudate, promoting wound healing, observing in situ of wound healing process and the like.

Environmentally friendly, sustainable, and high-performance ultralight composite foams are disclosed. The composite foams are prepared from cellulose nanomaterial, polymeric material, and a crosslinking agent. The fabrication process is simple and uses only water. The composite foams exhibit an elastic strain exceeding the values reported for known nanocellulose-based foams with no reinforcement. The foams exhibit a thermal conductivity superior to that of traditional insulating materials and retain structural integrity after burning.

Disclosed are methods of synthesizing organic-inorganic aerogel composites. The method comprises the steps of providing a cellulose component, derived from a plant based material, dispersed in an aqueous medium, adding a water soluble binder and a water soluble polymer to the aqueous medium to form a first mixture, forming a silica component, which is derived from a plant based silicate material, in situ when contacted with the first mixture for a predetermined time and condition to form a second mixture, gelling the second mixture and drying the second mixture to form an organic—inorganic aerogel. Also disclosed are organic-inorganic aerogel composites and their uses thereof. In particular, the organic-inorganic aerogel composites may have applications in thermal insulations, acoustic insulations and/or oil absorption.

The present disclosure provides a recombinant collagen and a recombinant collagen sponge material. The recombinant collagen comprises: (a) a protein composed of the amino acid sequence represented by SEQ ID NO: 2; and/or (b) a protein which has the same function as (a) and is derived from (a) by substitution, deletion and/or addition of one or more amino acids in SEQ ID NO:2. The recombinant collagen sponge material is obtained by sequential physical cross-linking and chemical cross-linking of the recombinant collagen. The recombinant collagen sponge material according to the present disclosure is capable of hemostasis, wound surface repair, moisture absorption and platelet aggregation, and has high moisture absorption, a significant hemostatic effect and good biocompatibility, assuming great clinical significance in the field of surgery.

The present invention provides a method to prepare polymer materials with interlocked porous structures by freezing and demulsification, which includes: (1) Preparing an emulsion containing uncrosslinked polymers and crosslinking agents. The uncrosslinked polymers are presented in the organic phase, and the crosslinking agents are presented in the organic phase or water phase. Under freezing, the demulsification is occurred which leads to the interaction between polymers and crosslinking agents, and the crosslinked materials are obtained. (2) After removing the ice crystals, polymer materials with interlocked porous structures are synthesized. The method provided by the present invention is simple to operate, and can well adjust the porous structures of obtained porous polymer materials. In addition, it is suitable for large scale manufacturing. At the same time, this process can form different functional porous polymer materials by simply changing the used monomers. Particularly, it can prepare melt-blown fabrics with antibacterial property, high-throughput vertical porous structures and high-temperature sterilizable feature, therefore, it can be used to manufacture medical products such as masks.

An anti-biofouling shape-memory composite aerogel includes a unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel, a plant polyphenol coating, and a polyphenol/iron ion chelate. The plant polyphenol coating is evenly distributed on an inner wall of the unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel, and the polyphenol/iron ion chelate is located at a top end of the unidirectional chitosan aerogel channel. The anti-biofouling chitosan-based composite aerogel has an evaporation rate of 1.96 kg.Math.m.sup.−2.Math.h.sup.−1 at an illumination intensity of 1 kW/m.sup.2. The composite aerogel has shape-memory properties, and can quickly restore its original shape in water after extrusion, thereby accelerating the diffusion of substances to complete the modification of inner channels. In this way, desirable anti-biofouling ability is achieved, and excellent structural stability as well as continuous and efficient photothermal water evaporation are guaranteed in a complex water environment.