Potential Wound Healing of PLGA Nanoparticles Containing a Novel L‐Carnitine–GHK Peptide Conjugate

Abstract

The development of a product that has simultaneous wound healing, anti‐inflammatory, and antimicrobial properties is desirable for wound healing medicine. In this study, glycine–histidine–lysine (GHK) peptide as a skin repair accelerator was coupled to L‐carnitine with antibacterial and anti‐inflammatory properties to investigate its new wound healing properties in a nanoparticle (NP) platform. The conjugate was synthesized by solid‐phase synthesis method with Fmoc chemistry, purified by preparative HPLC, and was identified with ESI‐Mass technique. The conjugate was then loaded into PLGA NPs, which was prepared using solvent evaporation technique. Zetasizer results showed a mean size and zeta potential of 193.15 nm and −30.2 ± 3.8 mV for the conjugate‐loaded PLGA NPs. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) exhibited spherical‐shaped morphology for the NPs with uniform size distribution (PDI = 0.265). Conjugate release from the NPs was about 10% at initial time, which increased to more than about 70% at 200 hr, exhibiting a sustained release trend. Additionally, the treatment of fibroblasts with the nanoconjugate indicated its biocompatibility. Compared to GHK, L‐carnitine and free conjugates, the most satisfactory wound healing activity was observed for conjugate‐loaded NPs upon wound closure in a rat model of skin injury repair. Furthermore, more epithelialization and neovascularization were observed for L‐carnitine–GHK nanoconjugate. Taken together, the L‐carnitine–GHK conjugate‐loaded PLGA NP will be a promising candidate for wound healing management.