An Injectable, Self-Adaptive Hydrogel with Metallic-Functionalized Metal Organic Frameworks for Enhanced Wound Healing in Dynamic Infectious and Inflammatory Microenvironment.

Abstract

Wound healing is a dynamic process often accompanied by bacterial infection. Bacterial proliferation and induced excessive inflammation hinder the healing process in infectious wounds, leading to refractory wounds. Addressing the challenges of infectious wounds requires the development of multifunctional dressings capable of eliminating bacterial infection, relieving inflammation, and restoring the wound microenvironment. In this study, a Ag⁺-ion functionalized and a Cu²⁺-ion functionalized UiO-67 metal-organic framework (MOF-Ag and MOF-Cu) are incorporated into an oxidized dextran and gelatin mixture to fabricate hydrogel, termed as OGAC. The resulting OGAC exhibited injectable, adhesive, hemostatic, antibacterial, and anti-inflammatory properties, along with good biocompatibility. The OGAC hydrogel precursor could be injected in situ at the wound site to cover the wound, serving as a physical barrier to protect wounds. Moreover, the OGAC demonstrates efficient antibacterial and anti-biofilm activity, against both Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Additionally, OGAC has superoxide dismutase-like and glutathione peroxidase-like activity for anti-oxidation, which is conducive to reduce inflammation in the wound. The OGAC reveals high performance for infected wound healing in a mouse model. These findings suggest that OGAC is a promising candidate with multiple functionalities for clinical wound management.