Light-Activated Tissue Adhesive Patch Achieves Rapid and Watertight Neurosurgical Sealing

Durotomy, a tear in the dura mater during neurosurgery, can lead to cerebrospinal fluid leakage, delayed healing, headaches, and serious infections. Achieving a reliable, watertight dural closure is therefore critical, but current sutures and adhesive sealants often fall short. Many glue-based products swell excessively or cause unwanted tissue adhesion, creating postoperative complications. Researchers have now developed a light-activated dural patch that rapidly seals dural defects while minimizing swelling and preventing adhesion to surrounding tissues.

In a breakthrough study led by Pusan National University (Busan, South Korea; www.pusan.ac.kr), the team designed a monolithic Janus dural patch using photocurable hyaluronic acid, a naturally biocompatible polymer known for its lubricating and anti-adhesive properties. Hyaluronic acid was chemically modified with methacrylate and 4-pentenoate groups to enable visible-light crosslinking. The material was lyophilized into a single patch with two functional surfaces: a dense side for strong wet adhesion and a porous side that absorbs fluid and limits unintended tissue bonding. The patch was compressed to a thin profile of about 0.2 mm to improve conformal contact with wet dura.

In laboratory testing, the patch sealed dural defects within five seconds of low-energy visible light exposure. The adhesive surface achieved burst pressures and wet adhesion strengths up to ten times higher than commercially available dural sealants, while exhibiting roughly 50 percent lower friction and minimal swelling. The study, published in Chemical Engineering Journal, also showed less than 200 percent swelling and minimal mass effect, alongside high flexibility and biocompatibility. In a rabbit durotomy model, the patch enabled rapid, effective closure without damage to surrounding skull, dura, or brain tissue.

The light-responsive Janus patch addresses key limitations of existing dural sealants by combining strong wet adhesion with an anti-adhesive surface in a single, simple material. This approach reduces the risk of cerebrospinal fluid leakage while avoiding postoperative complications linked to swelling or tissue sticking. In addition to neurosurgery, the strong adhesion of photocurable hyaluronic acid suggests potential applications in drug-delivery patches, cell-based constructs, and artificial tissues. The technology has been transferred to a biotech company for scale-up, with nonclinical studies expected to conclude in early 2026 and regulatory submissions planned in South Korea.

"Made from natural biopolymer hyaluronic acid, our dural patch provides strong wet adhesion, along with a lubricating surface that prevents unwanted tissue adhesion, after exposure to non-toxic visible light," said Professor Seung Yun Yang, who led the study, and noted that the technology enables rapid wound sealing, reducing the risk of postoperative cerebrospinal fluid leakage.

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