A transparent wound dressing based on bacterial cellulose whisker and poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate)

• Published in: International journal of biological macromolecules Vol. 105; no. Pt 1; pp. 638 - 644
• Main Authors: Di, Zeng, Shi, Zhijun, Ullah, Muhammad Wajid, Li, Sixiang, Yang, Guang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antibacterial properties; Bandages - microbiology; BC whisker; Cell Survival - drug effects; cellulose; Cellulose - chemistry; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli - drug effects; fibroblasts; Gluconacetobacter xylinus - chemistry; Hydrogel; hydrogels; Hydrogels - chemistry; Materials Testing; Mechanical Phenomena; Mice; modulus of elasticity; nanocrystals; nanoparticles; NIH 3T3 Cells; Polyhydroxyethyl Methacrylate - chemistry; Polyhydroxyethyl Methacrylate - pharmacology; silver; Silver - chemistry; silver nitrate; Staphylococcus aureus; Staphylococcus aureus - drug effects; toxicity; transmittance; Transparent wound dressing; Water - chemistry; water content; Wound Healing - drug effects; Transparent wound dressing; Hydrogel; Antibacterial properties; BC whisker
• ISSN: 0141-8130; 1879-0003; 1879-0003
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2017.07.075

The current study was aimed to develop a transparent wound dressing comprised of bacterial cellulose (BC) and poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) hydrogel coated with silver (Ag) nanoparticles. Briefly, different concentrations of BC whiskers (BCWs) were added into the HEMA solution to form PHEMA/BCWs hydrogel with volume ratio of monomer HEMA and BCWs as 7:3 and 1:1. The addition of BCWs into PHEMA matrix improved its equilibrium water content and light transmittance about 20%-40% and 10%, respectively. The Young's modulus for PHEMA was found to be 0.72MPa, which was improved to 0.57MPa and 0.50MPa for PHEMA/BCWs 7:3 and PHEMA/BCWs 1:1, respectively. Further, immersion of PHEMA/BCWs hydrogel in the AgNO3 and NaBH4 solutions bestowed it with antibacterial property and produced inhibition zones of 0.5±0.15cm and 0.25±0.15cm against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively. Similarly, PHEMA/BCWs prepared with 0.001M AgNO3 and 0.001M NaBH4 solutions showed 99% and 90% reduction in colony forming unit (CFU) for E. coli and S. aureus, respectively, after 24h. The PHEMA/BCWs/Ag hydrogel facilitated the growth of NIH3T3 fibroblast, showing their low toxicity. These results demonstrate the suitability of PHEMA/BCWs/Ag hydrogel for its application as potential transparent wound dressing material for skin repair.