{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,30]],"date-time":"2026-07-30T09:29:29Z","timestamp":1785403769310,"version":"3.56.0"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"7","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]],"date-time":"2026-07-21T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1784592000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100001809","name":"National Natural Science Foundation of China","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["32571576"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["32571576"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100001809","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"award":["32571576"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["32571576"]}],"id":[{"id":"https:\/\/ror.org\/01h0zpd94","id-type":"ROR","asserted-by":"publisher"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Biomimetics"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Tissue adhesives are gaining increasing attention as efficient alternatives to conventional wound closure methods, yet their clinical translation is often hindered by insufficient wet adhesion and inadequate biocompatibility. Drawing inspiration from nature\u2019s robust wet-adhesion strategies, particularly dynamic covalent interactions and reversible crosslinking, we report a family of bioinspired composite hydrogels fabricated from 4-carboxyphenylboronic acid-grafted polyethylenimine (4-CPBA-PEI) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) that serve as versatile bioadhesives. The polyethylenimine with different molecular weights (18,000, 70,000, and 100,000 Da) was used to prepare the 4-CPBA-PEI derivatives via EDC\/NHS-mediated amidation. The resulting hydrogels exhibited three-dimensional interconnected porous networks with tunable pore dimensions and equilibrium swelling ratios (ranging from 400% to 700%), closely correlated with the PEI molecular weight. Rheological measurements confirmed typical viscoelasticity, shear-thinning behavior, and outstanding self-healing performance, which are mainly attributed to hydrogen bonds and dynamic borate ester bonds in the network. The hydrogels firmly adhered to the surfaces of diverse matrices, such as glass, rubber, metal, plastic, wood, human skin, and wet mouse organs. Additionally, the obtained hydrogels exhibited high 2,2\u2032-azino-bis (3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) diammonium salt (ABTS) radical-scavenging activity (&gt;85%), excellent hemocompatibility (hemolysis rate &lt; 0.5%), and potent intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging activity. Cytocompatibility studies using NIH 3T3 fibroblasts demonstrated low cytotoxicity and favorable cytocompatibility. This biomimetic design yields multifunctional hydrogels that integrate tunable physical properties, wet-surface attachment, self-healing, antioxidant activity, and good biocompatibility, suggesting their potential as wound dressing candidates.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/biomimetics11070511","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]],"date-time":"2026-07-21T10:35:52Z","timestamp":1784630152000},"page":"511","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Fabrication of Bioinspired Hydrogels Using Carboxyphenylboronic Acid-Grafted Polyethylenimine and Polyvinyl Alcohol for Potential Wound Dressing Applications"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"11","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6175-5883","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Lei","family":"Nie","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Life Sciences, Xinyang Normal University, Xinyang 464000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Zihan","family":"Sun","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Life Sciences, Xinyang Normal University, Xinyang 464000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Shichang","family":"Cheng","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Dabie Mountain Laboratory of Henan Province, Xinyang 464000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Ling","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"College of Life Sciences, Xinyang Normal University, Xinyang 464000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"110463","DOI":"10.1016\/j.mtcomm.2024.110463","article-title":"Preparation of injectable self-healing hydrogels using carboxymethyl chitosan and oxidized dextran with incorporating quercetin-loaded PF127 micelles for wound healing","volume":"41","author":"Ding","year":"2024","journal-title":"Mater. Today Commun."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"285","DOI":"10.1016\/j.jconrel.2025.01.015","article-title":"Bioadhesives and bioactive hydrogels for wound management","volume":"379","author":"Kim","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Control. Release"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Liu, X., Yu, H., Wang, L., Huang, Z., Haq, F., Teng, L., Jin, M., and Ding, B. (2022). Recent advances on designs and applications of hydrogel adhesives. Adv. Mater. Interfaces, 9.","DOI":"10.1002\/admi.202101038"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"5378","DOI":"10.1038\/s41467-023-40753-5","article-title":"Designing nanohesives for rapid, universal, and robust hydrogel adhesion","volume":"14","author":"Pan","year":"2023","journal-title":"Nat. Commun."},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"8240","DOI":"10.1039\/D3CS00764B","article-title":"Nature-inspired adhesive systems","volume":"53","author":"Li","year":"2024","journal-title":"Chem. Soc. Rev."},{"key":"ref_6","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"9684","DOI":"10.1021\/acsnano.4c17864","article-title":"From dry to wet, the nature inspired strong attachment surfaces and their medical applications","volume":"19","author":"Guo","year":"2025","journal-title":"ACS Nano"},{"key":"ref_7","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"An, J., Hou, Z., Li, J., Bi, Q., Huang, S., Peng, C., and Peng, F. (2025). Pharmacological effects and application prospects of mussel adhesive proteins. Front. Pharmacol., 16.","DOI":"10.3389\/fphar.2025.1704475"},{"key":"ref_8","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e10385","DOI":"10.1002\/btm2.10385","article-title":"Mussel-inspired biomaterials: From chemistry to clinic","volume":"7","author":"Taghizadeh","year":"2022","journal-title":"Bioeng. Transl. Med."},{"key":"ref_9","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Han, Y., Cao, Y., and Lei, H. (2022). Dynamic covalent hydrogels: Strong yet dynamic. Gels, 8.","DOI":"10.3390\/gels8090577"},{"key":"ref_10","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e202206938","DOI":"10.1002\/ange.202206938","article-title":"Dynamic bonds: Adaptable timescales for responsive materials","volume":"134","author":"Wanasinghe","year":"2022","journal-title":"Angew. Chem."},{"key":"ref_11","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"6182","DOI":"10.1007\/s10853-022-07068-0","article-title":"One-pot synthesis of highly selective phenylboronic acid-functionalized organic polymers for the enrichment of cis-diol containing molecules","volume":"57","author":"Wang","year":"2022","journal-title":"J. Mater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_12","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"112798","DOI":"10.1016\/j.micromeso.2023.112798","article-title":"Synthesis of phenylboronic acid-functionalized covalent organic framework via thiol-ene \u201cclick\u201d reaction for highly efficient adsorption of cis-diol containing flavonoids","volume":"362","author":"Li","year":"2023","journal-title":"Microporous Mesoporous Mater."},{"key":"ref_13","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"673","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.accounts.4c00691","article-title":"Designing functional and responsive molecules with boronic acids","volume":"58","author":"Roque","year":"2025","journal-title":"Acc. Chem. Res."},{"key":"ref_14","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Liu, F., Li, G., An, Z., Wang, S., Xu, S., and Liu, H. (2025). Dynamic boronate ester based hydrogel with enhanced mechanical properties and multi-stimuli-triggered release for tissue repair and antioxidant therapy. Gels, 11.","DOI":"10.3390\/gels11050370"},{"key":"ref_15","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"132919","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.132919","article-title":"Facile preparation of highly adhesive yet ultra-strong poly (vinyl alcohol)\/cellulose nanocrystals composite hydrogel enabled by multiple networks structure","volume":"272","author":"Lv","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_16","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2432","DOI":"10.1007\/s10118-025-3438-z","article-title":"Facile preparation of super-strong and tough poly (vinyl alcohol)\/carbon nanotube hydrogel enabled by triple crosslinking networks","volume":"43","author":"Zuo","year":"2025","journal-title":"Chin. J. Polym. Sci."},{"key":"ref_17","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Quan, L., Xin, Y., Wu, X., and Ao, Q. (2022). Mechanism of self-healing hydrogels and application in tissue engineering. Polymers, 14.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym14112184"},{"key":"ref_18","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"114683","DOI":"10.1016\/j.colsurfb.2025.114683","article-title":"Dopamine-conjugated hyaluronic acid hydrogel interpenetrated by genipin crosslinked quaternary ammonium chitosan for potential biomedical adhesives applications","volume":"252","author":"Nie","year":"2025","journal-title":"Colloids Surf. B Biointerfaces"},{"key":"ref_19","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Zeng, G., Yi, N., Guo, Q., Han, F., and Weng, M. (2025). Poly(Vinyl Alcohol)\u2013Carbon Nanotube Self\u2212Adhesive Hydrogels for Wearable Strain Sensors. Polymers, 17.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym17162249"},{"key":"ref_20","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Liu, B., Zhang, J., and Guo, H. (2022). Research Progress of Polyvinyl Alcohol Water-Resistant Film Materials. Membranes, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/membranes12030347"},{"key":"ref_21","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Chandra, A., Singh, A.A., Prasad, S., Andersson, M.R., and Gedefaw, D. (2025). Crosslinking Approaches for Polyethylene Imine (PEI) and Its Uses in Adsorption of Heavy Metals, Dyes, and Carbon Dioxide. Appl. Sci., 15.","DOI":"10.3390\/app15094767"},{"key":"ref_22","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"128101","DOI":"10.1016\/j.polymer.2025.128101","article-title":"Molecular insights into an electrolytic polymer, polyethylene imine","volume":"321","author":"Hussan","year":"2025","journal-title":"Polymer"},{"key":"ref_23","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"441","DOI":"10.1080\/10601325.2024.2349953","article-title":"Slightly degradable, naturally antibacterial hydrogel matrixes derived from polyvinyl alcohol and linear\/branched-polyethyleneimine as a wound dressing material","volume":"61","author":"Ari","year":"2024","journal-title":"J. Macromol. Sci. Part A"},{"key":"ref_24","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"962","DOI":"10.1039\/D5PM00083A","article-title":"Phenylboronic acid derivatives: Advancing glucose-responsive insulin delivery and multifunctional biomedical applications","volume":"2","author":"Roy","year":"2025","journal-title":"RSC Pharm."},{"key":"ref_25","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"22287","DOI":"10.1039\/D1RA03707B","article-title":"Fabrication and catalytic performance of a novel tubular PMIA\/Ag@RGO nanocomposite nanofiber membrane","volume":"11","author":"Chen","year":"2021","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_26","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"20479","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.0c03224","article-title":"Design of Slidable Polymer Networks: A Rational Strategy to Stretchable, Rapid Self-Healing Hydrogel Electrolytes for Flexible Supercapacitors","volume":"12","author":"Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_27","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1817","DOI":"10.1016\/j.cclet.2020.03.005","article-title":"Injectable baicalin\/F127 hydrogel with antioxidant activity for enhanced wound healing","volume":"31","author":"Liu","year":"2020","journal-title":"Chin. Chem. Lett."},{"key":"ref_28","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"53270","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.5c13677","article-title":"Quaternary Ammonium Chitosan Hydrogel Platform with Zinc-Enhanced Bioactivity toward Scar-Free Wound Healing","volume":"17","author":"Nie","year":"2025","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_29","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"130190","DOI":"10.1016\/j.ijbiomac.2024.130190","article-title":"Preparation and characterization of photosensitive methacrylate-grafted sodium carboxymethyl cellulose as an injectable material to fabricate hydrogels for biomedical applications","volume":"263","author":"Jiang","year":"2024","journal-title":"Int. J. Biol. Macromol."},{"key":"ref_30","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2140","DOI":"10.1021\/acsami.3c15705","article-title":"Novel Injectable, Self-Healing, Long-Effective Bacteriostatic, and Healed-Promoting Hydrogel Wound Dressing and Controlled Drug Delivery Mechanisms","volume":"16","author":"Li","year":"2024","journal-title":"ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces"},{"key":"ref_31","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"214973","DOI":"10.1016\/j.bioadv.2026.214973","article-title":"Multifunctional light-activated hydrogel: Synergistic photothermal sterilization and tissue microenvironment engineering for enhanced wound healing","volume":"188","author":"Guo","year":"2026","journal-title":"Biomater. Adv."},{"key":"ref_32","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"140353","DOI":"10.1016\/j.colsurfa.2026.140353","article-title":"Conformal \u2018Sandwich\u2019 Indicating Patch Based on Self-Healing Dual-Dynamic Network Hydrogel for Rapid Detection of Rice Freshness","volume":"742","author":"Ying","year":"2026","journal-title":"Colloids Surf. A"},{"key":"ref_33","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Devi, V.K.A., Shyam, R., Palaniappan, A., Jaiswal, A., Oh, T.-H., and Nathanael, A.J. (2021). Self-healing hydrogels: Preparation, mechanism and advancement in biomedical applications. Polymers, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/polym13213782"},{"key":"ref_34","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106195","DOI":"10.1016\/j.reactfunctpolym.2025.106195","article-title":"Fabricated adhesive hydrogel patches via regulating weak physical interactions through carboxylated cellulose nanofibers","volume":"210","author":"Lan","year":"2025","journal-title":"React. Funct. Polym."},{"key":"ref_35","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e202200628","DOI":"10.1002\/asia.202200628","article-title":"Dynamic Grafting of Carboxylates onto Poly (Vinyl Alcohol) Polymers for Supramolecularly-Crosslinked Hydrogel Formation","volume":"17","author":"Wong","year":"2022","journal-title":"Chem. Asian J."},{"key":"ref_36","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Suner, S.S., Ayyala, R.S., and Sahiner, N. (2024). Antipathogenic Activity of Betainized Polyethyleneimine Sprays Without Toxicity. Biomedicines, 12.","DOI":"10.3390\/biomedicines12112462"},{"key":"ref_37","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Pigareva, V., Marina, V., Bolshakova, A., Berkovich, A., Kuznetsova, O., Semenova, A., Yushina, Y., Bataeva, D., Grudistova, M., and Sybachin, A. (2023). Biocidal coatings against gram-positive bacteria from linear and branched polycations: The decisive role of the diffusion coefficients of macromolecules. Coatings, 13.","DOI":"10.3390\/coatings13061076"},{"key":"ref_38","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"190","DOI":"10.1038\/s41392-025-02253-4","article-title":"Mitochondria in oxidative stress, inflammation and aging: From mechanisms to therapeutic advances","volume":"10","author":"Xu","year":"2025","journal-title":"Signal Transduct. Target. Ther."},{"key":"ref_39","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e70268","DOI":"10.1002\/mco2.70268","article-title":"Oxidative Stress: Signaling Pathways, Biological Functions, and Disease","volume":"6","author":"Liu","year":"2025","journal-title":"MedComm"},{"key":"ref_40","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1932","DOI":"10.1016\/j.polymdegradstab.2009.08.002","article-title":"Antioxidant capacity of novel amine derivatives of buckminsterfullerene: Determination of inhibition rate constants in a model oxidation system","volume":"94","author":"Allen","year":"2009","journal-title":"Polym. Degrad. Stab."},{"key":"ref_41","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e3927","DOI":"10.1002\/poc.3927","article-title":"C\u2015H\u00b7\u00b7\u00b7 O hydrogen bonding interactions for sterically hindered phenols and their phenoxyl radicals","volume":"32","author":"Wang","year":"2019","journal-title":"J. Phys. Org. Chem."},{"key":"ref_42","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"164","DOI":"10.1021\/acs.biomac.5c00986","article-title":"A Degradable Macromolecular Antioxidant for Efficient Arthritis Treatment","volume":"27","author":"Wang","year":"2025","journal-title":"Biomacromolecules"},{"key":"ref_43","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"7440","DOI":"10.1039\/D3RA08738G","article-title":"Surface modification strategies for improved hemocompatibility of polymeric materials: A comprehensive review","volume":"14","author":"Bhattacharjee","year":"2024","journal-title":"RSC Adv."},{"key":"ref_44","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2413","DOI":"10.1039\/D0BM02154G","article-title":"Combination strategies for antithrombotic biomaterials: An emerging trend towards hemocompatibility","volume":"9","author":"Ashcraft","year":"2021","journal-title":"Biomater. Sci."},{"key":"ref_45","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2431","DOI":"10.1039\/D4TB02181A","article-title":"Formulation and evaluation of PVA-based composite hydrogels: Physicochemical, leachables, and in vitro immunogenicity studies","volume":"13","author":"Himawan","year":"2025","journal-title":"J. Mater. Chem. B"}],"container-title":["Biomimetics"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2313-7673\/11\/7\/511\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]],"date-time":"2026-07-21T11:16:15Z","timestamp":1784632575000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/2313-7673\/11\/7\/511"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]]},"references-count":45,"journal-issue":{"issue":"7","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,7]]}},"alternative-id":["biomimetics11070511"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/biomimetics11070511","relation":{},"ISSN":["2313-7673"],"issn-type":[{"value":"2313-7673","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,21]]}}}