Injectable, Intrinsically Antibacterial Conductive Hydrogels with Self-Healing and pH Stimulus Responsiveness for Epidermal Sensors and Wound Healing

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2021 Nov 17;13(45):53541-53552. doi: 10.1021/acsami.1c14216. Epub 2021 Nov 2.

Abstract

Torealize intelligent and personalized medicine, it is a huge challenge to develop a hydrogel dressing that can be used as a sensor to monitor human health in real-time while promoting wound healing. Herein, an injectable, self-healing, and conductive chitosan-based (CPT) hydrogel with pH responsiveness and intrinsic antibacterial properties was fabricated via a Schiff base linkage and a hydrogen bond. Due to the introduction of Schiff base bonds, the injectable CPT hydrogel exhibits various excellent properties, such as pH responsiveness to sol-gel transition, self-healing properties, and broad-spectrum antibacterial properties even without additional antibacterial agents. In vitro experiments verify the excellent biocompatibility of the as-prepared hydrogel. An in vivo experiment in a mouse full-thickness skin-wound model was performed to confirm the outstanding effect on wound healing. Meanwhile, as epidermal sensors, the conductive hydrogel that perceives various human activities in real-time could provide the real-time analysis of the patient's healthcare information. Based on these excellent properties, the CPT hydrogel, as a biological dressing with a sensing function, lays a solid foundation for the further realization of personalized medicine.

Keywords: epidermal sensor; injectable conductive hydrogels; intrinsic antimicrobial property; pH responsiveness; wound healing.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / chemical synthesis
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / chemistry
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / pharmacology*
  • Cell Line
  • Cell Survival / drug effects
  • Chitosan / chemical synthesis
  • Chitosan / chemistry
  • Chitosan / pharmacology*
  • Electric Conductivity
  • Epidermis
  • Escherichia coli / drug effects*
  • Humans
  • Hydrogels / chemical synthesis
  • Hydrogels / chemistry
  • Hydrogels / pharmacology*
  • Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
  • Mice
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Molecular Structure
  • Particle Size
  • Staphylococcus aureus / drug effects*
  • Wound Healing / drug effects*

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Hydrogels
  • Chitosan