Ferrocene-Based Antioxidant Self-Healing Hydrogel via the Biginelli Reaction for Wound Healing

ACS Macro Lett. 2024 May 21;13(5):475-482. doi: 10.1021/acsmacrolett.4c00063. Epub 2024 Apr 9.

Abstract

The development of antioxidant wound dressings to remove excessive free radicals around wounds is essential for wound healing. In this study, we developed an efficient strategy to prepare antioxidant self-healing hydrogels as wound dressings by combining multicomponent reactions (MCRs) and postpolymerization modification. A polymer containing ferrocene and phenylboronic acid groups was developed via the Biginelli reaction, followed by efficient modification. This polymer is antioxidant due to its ferrocene moieties and can rapidly cross-link poly(vinyl alcohol) to realize an antioxidant self-healing hydrogel through dynamic borate ester linkages. This hydrogel has low cytotoxicity and is biocompatible. In in vivo experiments, this hydrogel is superior to existing clinical dressings in promoting wound healing. This study demonstrates the value of the Biginelli reaction in exploring biomaterials, potentially offering insights into the design of other multifunctional polymers and related materials using different MCRs.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antioxidants* / chemistry
  • Antioxidants* / pharmacology
  • Biocompatible Materials / chemistry
  • Biocompatible Materials / pharmacology
  • Boronic Acids / chemistry
  • Ferrous Compounds* / chemistry
  • Humans
  • Hydrogels* / chemistry
  • Hydrogels* / pharmacology
  • Metallocenes* / chemistry
  • Mice
  • Polyvinyl Alcohol / chemistry
  • Wound Healing* / drug effects

Substances

  • ferrocene
  • benzeneboronic acid