Flexible Bioactive Glass-Fiber-Reinforced Recombinant Collagen Sponge for Versatile Hemostasis, Antibacterial Protection, and Functional Skin Regeneration.

Abstract

Rapid hemostasis with functional skin regeneration remains a major challenge in wound care. We engineered a flexible composite sponge by reinforcing recombinant human-like collagen (RHC) with copper-doped bioactive glass fibers (CuBGF). The CuBGF-RHC sponges exhibited a porous, highly hydrophilic, and mechanically robust architecture. In vitro, they enhanced fibroblast proliferation to ∼200% of control, accelerated wound closure to 98.7 ± 0.9% within 48 h, reduced intracellular reactive oxygen species, and suppressed pro-inflammatory macrophage polarization from 70.2% to 11.9%. Strong antibacterial activity was observed, with HCuBGF-RHC nearly eliminating Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli colonies. Hemostatic assays confirmed accelerated coagulation, with clotting times reduced to 6.7 ± 0.4 min versus >10 min for gelatin sponge, and platelet adhesion increased to 41.9 ± 2.5%. In rat femoral vein bleeding models, HCuBGF-RHC reduced hemostasis time to 198.3 ± 33.3 s and blood loss to 1.33 ± 0.32 g. In full-thickness skin wounds, it achieved >93% closure by day 14, enhanced type III collagen remodeling, and restored adnexal structures. Transcriptomic analysis revealed regulation of extracellular matrix, angiogenesis, and inflammatory pathways. These findings demonstrate that CuBGF-RHC sponges integrate structural and biochemical cues to achieve both rapid hemostasis and functional skin regeneration, underscoring their translational potential in wound management.