Hyaluronan/Zinc Oxide Nanocomposite-Based Membrane: Preparation, Characterization, and In Vitro and In Vivo Evaluation

Abstract

Hyaluronic acid (HA) has attracted the attention of scientists for its application in many medical fields owing to its intrinsic properties such as biodegradability, biocompatibility, and nontoxicity. Poor stability and antibacterial activity are the most significant drawbacks of using HA in preparing a wound dressing. The wound dressing should be able to swell and absorb exudates from the wound, as well as possess antibacterial activity. Herein, we successfully prepared an HA-based antibacterial wound dressing that can swell more than 500 times and with good mechanical properties. HA was used both as reducing and stabilizing agents, and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) were incorporated via in situ synthesis. The uniform spherical shape of ZnO-NPs (50 ± 10 nm) was synthesized and assembled on a hyaluronan/polyvinyl alcohol matrix (HA/PVA), forming stable and evenly distributed ZnO-NPs, which interacted with the HA/PVA. Such a hybrid nanostructure prevented ZnO-NPs from dropping off the PVA/HA network and thus minimized the toxicity of NPs. Concerning the slow release of NPs, the nanocomposite membrane still exhibited significant antibacterial activity against different types of bacteria (G+/−). The ZnO-NPs/HA/PVA composite membrane allows the attachment and growth of normal human dermal fibroblasts and human primary osteogenic sarcoma (Saos-2) without exhibiting toxicity. In vivo measurements showed that the nanocomposite PVA/HA/ZnO-NP membrane promoted infected wound healing compared with the control sample. The results obtained suggest that the investigated nanocomposite has reasonable potential as an antibacterial wound dressing material.