Chitosan-Chondroitin sulfate based polyelectrolyte complex for effective management of chronic wounds

• Published in: International journal of biological macromolecules Vol. 132; pp. 97 - 108
• Main Authors: Sharma, Swati, Swetha, K. Laxmi, Roy, Aniruddha
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.07.2019
• Subjects: Adsorption; Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Anti-Bacterial Agents - toxicity; Cell Adhesion - drug effects; Cell Line; Cell Proliferation - drug effects; Chitosan; Chitosan - chemistry; Chondroitin sulfate; Chondroitin Sulfates - chemistry; Hemolysis - drug effects; Humans; In-situ scaffold; Materials Testing; Mice; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Molecular Weight; Polyelectrolyte complex; Polyelectrolytes - chemistry; Polyelectrolytes - pharmacology; Polyelectrolytes - toxicity; Porosity; Wound healing; Wound Healing - drug effects; Chondroitin sulfate; Wound healing; Chitosan; Polyelectrolyte complex; In-situ scaffold
• ISSN: 0141-8130; 1879-0003
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2019.03.186

Acute and chronic wound remain an unresolved clinical problem among various demographic groups. Traditional marketed products focus mainly on inhibition of bacterial growth at the wound site neglecting the tissue repair, which significantly affect the healing rate. It would be highly beneficial if a wound healing material can be developed which has both antibacterial as well as tissue regenerating potential. We have prepared a polyelectrolyte complex (PEC) using chitosan (CH) and chondroitin sulfate (CS) which can form an in-situ scaffold by spontaneous mixing. The fabrication of CH-CS PEC was optimized using Quality-By-Design (QbD) approach. The prepared PEC showed very high swelling and porosity property. It was found to be non-hemolytic with good blood compatibility and low blood clotting index. It also exhibited good antibacterial activity against both gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria. The cell proliferation study exhibited good cytocompatibility and almost four-fold increase in cell density when treated with CH-CS PEC compared to control. In summary, we demonstrated that the prepared CH-CS PEC showed good blood compatibility, high antibacterial effect, and promoted wound healing potentially by stimulating fibroblast growth, making it an ideal wound dressing material.