Visible Light-Controllable Surgical Hemostatic Adhesives Enabled by Vitamin B12-Stabilized Poly(α-Lipoic Acid)

Water-resistant adhesives are indispensable for biomedical applications, from surgical wound closure to internal hemostasis. While poly(-lipoic acid)-based adhesives show promise for their strong underwater adhesion, their clinical utility has been limited by uncontrolled polymerization-depolymerization dynamics. Here we present a visible light-controllable adhesive system enabled by a simple mix of -lipoic acid (LA) and vitamin B12 (i.e., adenosylcobalamin or AdoB12)--a photolabile compound--without resorting to any chemical modification. Benign visible light irradiation facilitates the cleavage of the C-Co bond and the subsequent formation of B12-thiolate complexes that stabilize LA polymers against depolymerization. The photoresponsive LA-AdoB12 adhesive system has proven highly effective in a wide range of surgical applications, achieving (1) strong bonding in porcine skin models in vitro, (2) reliable sealing of punctured organs (lung, heart and stomach) ex vivo, and (3) immediate hemostasis in active bleeding models such as topical, esophageal, and intestinal wounds in vivo. This work highlights a simple yet powerful strategy for creating visible light-controllable bioglues well-suited for diverse surgical applications.