“Natural blood clots can be slow to form and mechanically fragile, which limits their ability to stop severe bleeding and can compromise healing,” said Jianyu Li, senior author and Professor of Mechanical Engineering and Canada Research Chair in Tissue Repair and Regeneration.

“Our work shows that, when engineered appropriately, red blood cells can play a central structural role, enabling the design of stronger and more functional biomaterials.”

Shuaibing Jiang led the research during his Ph.D. studies at McGill. He is now a Postdoctoral Associate at Harvard Medical School.