Abstract
Alginate (Alg) is a renewable polymer with excellent hemostatic properties and biocapability and is widely used for hemostatic wound dressing. However, the swelling properties of alginate-based wound dressings need to be promoted to meet the requirements of wider application. Poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) is a natural polymer with high hydrophility. In the current study, novel Alg/PGA composite microparticles with double network structure were prepared by the emulsification/internal gelation method. It was found from the structure characterization that a double network structure was formed in the composite microparticles due to the ion chelation interaction between Ca2+ and the carboxylate groups of Alg and PGA and the electrostatic interaction between the secondary amine group of PGA and the carboxylate groups of Alg and PGA. The swelling behavior of the composite microparticles was significantly improved due to the high hydrophility of PGA. Influences of the preparing conditions on the swelling behavior of the composites were investigated. The porous microparticles could be formed while compositing of PGA. Thermal stability was studied by thermogravimetric analysis method. Moreover, in vitro cytocompatibility test of microparticles exhibited good biocompatibility with L929 cells. All results indicated that such Alg/PGA composite microparticles are a promising candidate in the field of wound dressing for hemostasis or rapid removal of exudates.
Highlights
Wound healing is a complex process with sequential phases and demands a proper environment.Because hydrogels keep the wound surface in a moist environment, they could promote healing, according to the early work by Winters [1]
The corresponding absorption band of microparticles shifted to 3420 cm−1, indicating the presence of hydrogen bonds between alginate and Poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA)
Alg/PGA composite microparticles with controllable structure were successfully prepared through the emulsification/internal gelation method and characterized
Summary
Wound healing is a complex process with sequential phases and demands a proper environment. A natural hydrophilic polymer like poly(γ-glutamic acid) (PGA) was chosen for a composite with alginate instead of synthetic super-absorbent polymers. The emulsification/internal gelation technique is an effective way to prepare the microparticles with the controllable structure with the aid of the moderate crosslinking reaction in the emulsion droplets [31,32,33,34,35]. This method was still not used in the preparation of the Alg/PGA composite microparticles. The emulsification/internal gelation method could promote the properties and widen the application of these microparticles
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
