Enhancement of Skin Wound Healing by rhEGF-Loaded Carboxymethyl Chitosan Nanoparticles

Abstract

The self-assembly of hydrophobically modified polymers has become a research hotspot due to its wide application in the biomedical field. Recombinant human epidermal growth factors (rhEGFs) are molecules that are able to enhance wound healing; however, they have a short half-life and require sustained action to enhance their mitogenic effect on epithelial cells. Here, we proposed a new delivery system to avoid the inhibition of rhEGF by various enzymes, thus improving its bioavailability and sustained release. The amphiphilic polymer was composed of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) and carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS), which were further characterized by fourier transformed infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR). Then, the self-assembly behavior of CLA–CMCS (CC) polymer in water was observed in which the particle size of CC decreased from 196 to 155 nm with the degree of CLA substitution increasing. The nanoparticles were loaded with rhEGF and the maximum rhEGF loading efficiency (LE) of CC3 nanoparticles was 82.43 ± 3.14%. Furthermore, CC nanoparticles (NPs) exhibited no cytotoxicity for L929 cells, and cell proliferation activity was well preserved after rhEGF loading to CC-NPs and was comparable to that of free rhEGF. Topically applied rhEGF:CC-NPs significantly accelerated the wound-closure rate in full thickness, which was most probably due to its sustained release and enhanced skin permeation. In conclusion, carboxymethyl chitosan-based nanoparticles were constructed and showed good cytocompatibility. Moreover, these findings also demonstrated the therapeutic potential of rhEGF:CC-NPs as a topical wound-healing drug carrier.

Chitosan-Coated PLGA Nanoparticles Loaded with Peganum harmala Alkaloids with Promising Antibacterial and Wound Healing Activities

“…Figure 4 depicts the release profile of HARF from the H/CS/PLGA NPs into a phosphate buffer medium. The release profile showed an initial release of 82.50 ± 0.20% in the first 2 h, which increased to 87.50 ± 0.50% over 72 h. These findings agree very well with previous reports [ 42 , 43 ]. The sustained release behavior is attributed to the diffusion of the encapsulated HARF from the polymeric matrix after the erosion and hydrolytic cleavage of PLGA.…”

“…The % cell viabilities of all concentrations were above 85% ( Figure 5 ), with no significant difference compared to the control. These findings demonstrate the biocompatibility of the designed H/CS/PLGA NPs with skin fibroblast cells [ 43 ].…”

“…The sustained release behavior is attributed to the diffusion of the encapsulated HARF from the polymeric matrix after the erosion and hydrolytic cleavage of PLGA. Furthermore, the CS decorating the PLGA NPs surface plays a vital role in achieving a prolonged release behavior, which can increase the healing effect of HARF on the wound area by prolonging the contact time with skin cells [ 40 , 42 , 43 ].…”

An injectable elastic hydrogel crosslinked with curcumin–gelatin nanoparticles as a multifunctional dressing for the rapid repair of bacterially infected wounds

“…The curcumin-derived nanoparticles can help in solving these problems through their high specific surface area and apparent solubility and in turn improves their bioavailability and treatment efficacy. 15,16…”

“…The curcumin-derived nanoparticles can help in solving these problems through their high specific surface area and apparent solubility and in turn improves their bioavailability and treatment efficacy. 15,16 In this work, we intend to develop an antibacterial antioxidant injectable hydrogel wound dressing with self-healing and elastic properties using carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) and oxidized sodium alginate (OSA) and further prove its potential effects in the wound healing of infected full-thickness defect skin in vivo (Scheme 1). The curcumin-loaded nanoparticles (CG NPs) were prepared using gelatin through glutaraldehyde crosslinking, and then the nanoparticles were mixed with carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCS) and oxidized sodium alginate (OSA) solutions to form a double-crosslinking injectable hydrogel (CG NPs-Gel) with high elasticity and self-healing properties.…”