J. Mater. Sci. Technol. ›› 2025, Vol. 219: 189-204.DOI: 10.1016/j.jmst.2024.08.054

• Research article • Previous Articles     Next Articles

Spreadable thermosensitive nanocomposite hydrogel dressing with ultrasound-responsive bactericidal/repair-promoting regulation and cascade antioxidantion for infected burn wound repair

Meng Yua,1, Yi Guob,1, Shaowen Zhouc,1, Yanhuai Lia, Zexing Dengd,e,*, Xin Zhaoa,*, Yong Hana,f,*   

  1. aState Key Laboratory for Mechanical Behavior of Materials, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
    bShaanxi Key Laboratory of Brain Disorders, Institute of Basic and Translational Medicine, Xi’an Medical University, Xi’an 710021, China
    cKey Laboratory of Shaanxi Province for Craniofacial Precision Medicine Research, College of Stomatology, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China
    dCollege of Materials Science and Engineering, Xi’an University of Science and Technology, Xi’an 710054, China
    eDepartment of Radiology, Functional and Molecular Imaging Key Lab of Shaanxi Province, Tangdu Hospital, Air Force Medical University, Xi’an 710038, China
    fDepartment of Orthopaedics, The First Affiliated Hospital College of Medicine, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710061, China
  • Received:2024-07-23 Revised:2024-08-23 Accepted:2024-08-29 Published:2024-09-20 Online:2025-06-05
  • Contact: *E-mail addresses:biomaterial@xust.edu.cn (Z. Deng),zhaoxinbio@mail.xjtu.edu.cn (X. Zhao),yonghan@mail.xjtu.edu.cn (Y. Han)
  • About author:1These authors contributed equally to this work.

Abstract: Treating severe burn wounds poses significant challenges, including considerable cell loss, excessive inflammation, and a high susceptibility to bacterial infections. Ideal burn dressings should exhibit excellent antibacterial properties, anti-inflammatory effects, and promote cell proliferation. Additionally, they need facilitate painless dressing changes and be user-friendly. Herein, we synthesized a thermosensitive hydrogel by crosslinking poly (N-isopropylacrylamide-co-allyloxybenzaldehyde) (PNA) and amino-terminated Pluronic F127 (APF) through a Schiff base reaction. It exhibited reversible gel-sol transition and spreadability. By incorporating piezoelectric gold nanoparticle-modified barium titanate (Au@BaTiO3) and cascade antioxidant MOF-818, a nanocomposite hydrogel dressing with diverse bioactive functionalities was developed. Results demonstrated that the nanocomposite hydrogel possessed gel-sol transition properties, maintained a stable gel state within a broad temperature range, and desirable self-healing property. Au@BaTiO3 exhibited good piezoelectric properties and ROS generation upon ultrasound stimulation, while MOF-818 displayed highly efficient cascade nanozyme activity. The combination of Au@BaTiO3 and MOF-818 promoted fibroblast proliferation and migration, reduced intracellular ROS levels, and induced anti-inflammatory polarization of macrophages under ultrasound stimulation. In vitro and in vivo antibacterial results disclosed that the nanocomposite hydrogel had excellent antibacterial activity under high-intensity ultrasound stimulation. When applied to infected burn wounds, the nanocomposite hydrogel can rapidly sterilize the wound upon initial high-intensity ultrasound, and then reduce inflammation and promote M2 macrophage polarization by the following low-intensity ultrasound stimulation, and thus accelerating the healing by improving granulation tissue formation, angiogenesis, and collagen deposition.

Key words: Thermosensitive nanocomposite hydrogel, Piezoelectric nanoparticles, MOF nanozyme, Bactericidal/repair-promoting regulation, Infected burn wound