A Silk-Based Patch with Temporary Adhesion and Detachability on the Ocular Surface for Inflammatory Mediator Removal

Corneal alkali burns cause persistent inflammation, leading to corneal vascularization and fibrosis, which severely impair vision. Here, we developed a temporary adhesive silk-based patch to capture and remove inflammatory mediators from the ocular surface. The patch utilizes photocrosslinkable silk for mechanical support, chitosan as the adhesive, hyaluronan for lubrication, and polyamidoamine (PAMAM) dendrimers with heparin to enhance adsorption. After water annealing, the patch exhibited excellent transparency, mechanical strength, and resistance to swelling, remaining attached to the rat ocular surface for 3–5 days. Adsorption tests confirmed that the patch effectively captured small-molecule dyes, proteins, and free DNA. In the rat corneal alkali burn model, imaging and histological evaluations showed significant reductions in vascularization and fibrosis after 3 days of treatment, along with improved corneal transparency. RNA sequencing revealed that patch treatment effectively inhibited the PI3K–AKT inflammatory pathway. This inflammation-removing patch represents an innovative treatment for corneal alkali burns with significant clinical potential.角膜碱烧伤（corneal alkali burns）会引发持续性炎症，进而导致角膜血管化与纤维化，严重损害视力。本研究开发了一种临时粘附性丝素基贴片，可捕获并清除眼表的炎症介质。该贴片以光交联丝素蛋白（photocrosslinkable silk）作为机械支撑载体，以壳聚糖（chitosan）作为粘合剂，以透明质酸（hyaluronan）实现润滑功能，并搭载结合肝素的聚酰胺-胺（PAMAM）树状大分子以增强吸附能力。经水退火（water annealing）处理后，该贴片展现出优异的透明度、机械强度与抗溶胀性能，可在大鼠眼表稳定粘附3~5天。吸附实验证实，该贴片可有效捕获小分子染料、蛋白质与游离DNA。在大鼠角膜碱烧伤模型中，成像与组织学评估结果显示，经过3天的治疗后，角膜血管化与纤维化程度显著降低，角膜透明度也得到改善。RNA测序（RNA sequencing）分析表明，贴片治疗可有效抑制PI3K-AKT炎症通路。这种可清除炎症的贴片为角膜碱烧伤提供了一种创新治疗方案，具备可观的临床转化潜力。