Preparation and characterization of oxidized regenerated cellulose film for hemostasis and the effect of blood on its surface

Hemostatic effects of oxidized regenerated cellulose (ORC) are well-known but its mechanism has never been demonstrated clearly. Since thrombus formation is a kind of surface phenomenon, we changed the morphology of cellulose to form a kind of membrane with ionic liquid as solution, and also we prepared ORC films with nitrogen dioxide(NO₂)/carbon tetrachloride(CCl₄) oxidation system reacting for 16, 40, 64 and 88 h, respectively. FTIR and NMR spectra showed that NO₂/CCl₄ oxidation system had a high selectivity on hydroxyl group at C6 of regenerated cellulose. With the oxidation time prolonging, the carboxyl content was enhanced and the DP was reduced. The XPS results suggested that a new carboxyl bond was formed due to the increasing of oxygen content. From contact angle analysis, the wettability of blood on the ORC film surface was better than that of the regenerated cellulose film, which was beneficial for the blood to spread. SEM photographs showed that the ORC film oxidized for 40 h could adsorb and activate more platelets and erythrocytes. Hemostatic evaluation and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay indicated that the ORC film had a dramatic hemostatic performance, and the products of platelets release reaction, activated platelets glycoprotein and activated clotting enzymes were increased simultaneously. Moreover, the possible mechanism of the hemostasis for ORC film was discussed.