Abstract
Nanofibrillar cellulose (NFC)-derived dressings such as films, hydrogels, and aerogels are one of the favorable materials for wound healing due to their proper mechanical properties and water holding ability. However, the therapeutic differences between native and anionic NFC materials are rarely studied. In this report, we compared the differences and addressed the regenerative potential of native and anionic wood-derived NFC hydrogels for wound treatment. In vitro characteristics of the hydrogels were detected using scanning electron microscopy, rheological measurements, and swelling and hemolytic activity assays. Skin regeneration at an early stage after hydrogel treatment was analyzed using an in vivo splinted excisional full-thickness skin wound model in C57BL/6 mice. Both native NFC and anionic NFC (ANFC) hydrogel with differing mechanical and surface properties were shown to be biocompatible. Surprisingly, wounds treated with NFC and ANFC hydrogel did not show any statistical difference compared with control wounds and progressed through normal wound closure, inflammatory response, re-epithelialization, vascularization, and tissue maturation with no signs of fibrosis. The data show here for the first time the therapeutic performance of native and anionic NFC hydrogel in a wound mimicking human wound healing mechanisms. The mechanical properties of native and anionic NFC hydrogels such as the capability to modify material stiffness may also prove to be valuable in the management of wounds in the future.
Highlights
Wound healing is a complex biological process, which occurs immediately at the time of injury and requires interactions between resident and migratory cell populations, soluble factors, and the extracellular matrix [1]
We further evaluated the biocompatibility of nanofibrillar cellulose (NFC) hydrogels in vitro using hemolysis assay (Figure 1D)
Wounds treated with NFC hydrogels showed equal granulation tissue compared with control (Figure 6A,B)
Summary
Wound healing is a complex biological process, which occurs immediately at the time of injury and requires interactions between resident and migratory cell populations, soluble factors, and the extracellular matrix [1]. Wounds are categorized into acute and chronic wounds. The acute wounds are healed typically within days or a few weeks and they proceed through four overlapping and highly programmed wound healing phases: hemostasis, inflammation, proliferation (formation of granulation tissue), and remodeling [1,2]. If the wound is not healed within timely or orderly manner due to a failure at one or more phases of wound healing, it is characterized as a chronic wound. To overcome problems related to disturbed wound healing, various tissue-engineering applications such as hydrogels, biologics, bioactive wound dressings, cell-based approaches, cultured epithelial autografts and biofabrication via 3D printing have been developed [3,4,5,6,7,8]. To overcome problems related to disturbed wound healing, various tissue-engineering applications such as hydrogels, biologics, bioactive wound dressings, cell-based approaches, cultured epithelial autografts and biofabrication via 3D printing have been developed [3,4,5,6,7,8]. 4.0/).
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