Hyung Joon Cha

Jisu Jang and Hyung Joon Cha. Korean Society for Biotechnology and Bioengineering Journal 2025;40:307-18. https://doi.org/10.7841/ksbbj.2025.40.4.307

Byung Hoon Jo and Hyung Joon Cha. Korean Society for Biotechnology and Bioengineering Journal 2025;40:295-301. https://doi.org/10.7841/ksbbj.2025.40.3.295

Hemostatic biomaterials for internal applications require strong wet adhesion, reasonable degradability, and supportive biocompatibility for wound healing. However, clinically used topical hemostats such as Surgicel and Avitene may induce hemolysis, inflammation, or leave behind residual debris that impairs healing. Bioinspired materials, including decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) and mussel adhesive protein (MAP), have emerged as promising alternatives for their hemostatic potential and biocompatibility. Based on the biomimetic properties of dECM and the adhesive functionality of MAP, composite sponges combining both components are developed and evaluated through in vitro and in vivo tests. Among the formulations tested, E50M50 (9.1% w/w dECM and 90.9% w/w MAP) demonstrates the strongest hemostatic performance. This synergy is identified to be primarily associated with the secondary hemostasis phase. E50M50 also exhibits excellent hemocompatibility, cytocompatibility, and a reasonable biodegradability aligned with early wound healing phases. In a warfarin‐treated rat liver injury model, E50M50 significantly reduces bleeding time and blood loss compared to clinical controls. Histological analysis further confirms that E50M50 provided superior early healing outcomes than Avitene, with significantly reduced necrosis, fibrosis, and residual debris. These results highlight the potential of ECM‐MAP sponges as absorbable, adhesive hemostats for internal bleeding control and early‐stage wound stabilization.

Silver sulfide (Ag2S) quantum dots hold tremendous potential as promising near-infrared (NIR) theranostic agents for cancer treatment owing to their exceptional photophysical properties and deep tissue penetration capabilities. However, their complex synthesis process under harsh reaction conditions and poor retention at the target site still restrict clinical applications. Herein, metalloprotein adhesive nanodots biomineralized using engineered silver-binding mussel protein (MAP-AgP35) are presented as biosafe, high-performance photosensitizers to enable NIR-triggered theranostics for local cancer treatments. By constructing donor-acceptor pairs within the nanostructures through interfacial adhesive bridging between the MAP-AgP35 and Ag2S minerals, the sticky proteinic Ag2S nanodots dramatically reduced the energy bandgap for enhanced light absorption; this enables remarkably efficient superoxide radical (·O2−) generation and photothermal conversion (η ~ 59%), in addition to effective fluorescence emission in the second NIR (NIR-II) region. The outstanding optochemical functionalities of these nanodots allow direct eradication of cancer cells via effective photodynamic and photothermal actions in the presence of an 808 nm NIR laser, with good biocompatibility toward normal cells. Importantly, these biomineralized nanodots overcome major limitations of conventional photosensitizers, offering a clinically translatable theranostic platform for realizing precise and complete ablation of cancer in a minimally invasive manner.