Harnessing antibacterial properties of biomaterials for fabricating wound healing patch

Abstract

IntroductionStudies aimed at elucidating the role of infections caused by bacterial colonization in wound healing are gaining increasing recognition. Proper management of wound infections purposely aimed at keeping low levels of bacteria on wound surfaces is pivotal in enhancing the wound healing process and preventing local and systematic infections. In this research, biomaterials with inherent antimicrobial properties were exploited for fabricating a wound healing composite with an improved potential of reducing or completely inhibiting bacterial growth. The use of biomaterials with inherent antibacterial properties was necessitated by the desire to reduce the incorporated antibiotic load, thus reducing the risk of development of resistance to antibiotics by these bacteria.MethodsCarboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), one of the most common derivatives of cellulose, chitosan (CTS), a natural, biodegradable, non‐toxic polymer that demonstrates diverse biological properties, metalized and non‐metalized halloysites (HNT & mHNT) as well as variants loaded with antibiotics (LHNT, LmHNT) were tested for antimicrobial properties against E.coli at concentrations of 2mg/ml and 0.5mg/ml in 3 repeats. CTS and CMC were then physically cross‐linked and impregnated with halloysites and metal coated halloysites. A Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) characterization test was then carried out to validate the cross‐linking of the polymers. The biocompatibility of the fabricated composite was assessed by studying the proliferation rate of human dermal fibroblasts treated with the test samples.Results2mg/ml and 0.5mg/ml of the biomaterials tested all inhibited growth of E. coli with metal‐coated halloysites loaded with antibiotics exhibiting the most antimicrobial effect. CTS and CMC both exhibited characteristic absorption peaks on the FTIR spectra which conforms with data reported in other studies, with cross‐linking between the two polymers characterized by broadening of the bands at 3400–3301 cm−1. The proliferation assay showed that all the samples did not inhibit fibroblast cell growth with the exception of CTS‐CMC composites incorporated with 5% HNT and 5% metalized HNT.DiscussionCTS and CMC composites incorporated with HNTs have the potential to effectively suppress microbial growth when used to fabricate wound dressings. The dressing is easy to fabricate, and its components are tunable from a personalized medicine perspective.