ZnO Nanoparticles-Modified Dressings to Inhibit Wound Pathogens

• Published in: Materials Vol. 14; no. 11; p. 3084
• Main Authors: Rayyif, Sajjad Mohsin I., Mohammed, Hamzah Basil, Curuțiu, Carmen, Bîrcă, Alexandra Cătălina, Grumezescu, Alexandru Mihai, Vasile, Bogdan Ștefan, Dițu, Lia Mara, Lazăr, Veronica, Chifiriuc, Mariana Carmen, Mihăescu, Grigore, Holban, Alina Maria
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Basel MDPI AG 04.06.2021; MDPI
• Subjects: Antiinfectives and antibacterials; antimicrobial nanoparticles; biofilm control; Biofilms; chronic wounds; E coli; Electron microscopy; Fourier transforms; Microorganisms; Nanoparticles; Nitrates; opportunistic pathogens; Pathogens; Polyesters; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Scanning electron microscopy; Spectrum analysis; Staphylococcus infections; Textile fibers; Transmission electron microscopy; Virulence; Wound healing; Zinc oxide; Zinc oxides; ZnO nano-coatings; United States > US
• ISSN: 1996-1944; 1996-1944
• DOI: 10.3390/ma14113084

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles (NPs) have been investigated for various skin therapies in recent years. These NPs can improve the healing and modulate inflammation in the wounds, but the mechanisms involved in such changes are yet to be known. In this study, we have designed a facile ZnO nano-coated dressing with improved antimicrobial efficiency against typical wound pathogens involved in biofilm and chronic infections. ZnO NPs were obtained by hydrothermal method and characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Antibacterial and antibiofilm effects were evaluated against laboratory and clinical isolates of significant Gram-negative (Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus and Enterococcus faecalis) opportunistic pathogens, by quantitative methods. Our results have shown that the developed dressings have a high antibacterial efficiency after 6–24 h of contact when containing 0.6 and 0.9% ZnO NPs and this effect is similar against reference and clinical isolates. Moreover, biofilm development is significantly impaired for up to three days of contact, depending on the NPs load and microbial species. These results show that ZnO-coated dressings prevent biofilm development of main wound pathogens and represent efficient candidates for developing bioactive dressings to fight chronic wounds.