Novel Nanocomposite Hydrogels Based on Crosslinked Microbial Polysaccharide as Potential Bioactive Wound Dressings

Abstract

A multitude of dressings have been developed to promote wound repair, such as membranes, foams, hydrocolloids and hydrogels. In this study, a crosslinked polysaccharide hydrogel was mixed with a bioactive ingredient to synthesize a novel nanocomposite material to be used in wound healing. Variation of the ratio between hydrogel components was followed and its effect was analyzed in regard to swelling, degradation rate and thermo-mechanical behavior. The resulting crosslinked structures were characterized by FTIR and microscopy analyses. The antimicrobial activity of the crosslinked hydrogels loaded with bioactive agent was evaluated using two bacterial strains (Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia Coli). All the results showed that the new synthesized biopolymer nanocomposites have adequate properties to be used as antibacterial wound dressings.