Promoting Oral Mucosal Wound Healing with a Hydrogel Adhesive Based on a Phototriggered S‐Nitrosylation Coupling Reaction

Abstract

affect the quality of life of patients. [2] Unlike the external cutaneous membrane, the lining of the oral cavity has a wet and highly dynamic environment, [3] with endogenous saliva and exogenous food and drink continuously bathing the oral mucosa. In addition, chewing, speech, swallowing, and even changes in facial expressions cause movement of the tongue and oral mucosa. These complex challenges typically render local treatment strategies for protective materials and therapeutic drugs ineffective, owing to their short retention on the mucosal surface. [4] Topical agents such as solutions, powders, ointments, polymer films, and hydrogels (e.g., Gengigel) commonly used in clinical settings are diluted or washed away by saliva within 1 h. This is far shorter than the optimal repair time for treating oral mucosal disorders, which require 12-24 h to heal. [4] In addition to meet the fundamental requirements of safety and usability, the ideal oral mucosal repair material should be thin, elastic, and have excellent wet-tissue adhesion to resist The wet and highly dynamic environment of the mouth makes local treatment of oral mucosal diseases challenging. To overcome this, a photo-crosslinking hydrogel adhesive is developed inspired by the success of light-curing techniques in dentistry. The adhesive operates on a fast (within 5 s) phototriggered S-nitrosylation coupling reaction and employs imine anchoring to connect to host tissues. Unlike other often-used clinical agents that adhere weakly and for short durations, this thin, elastic, adhesive, and degradable cyclic o-nitrobenzyl-modified hyaluronic acid gel protects mucosal wounds from disturbance by liquid rinsing, oral movement, and friction for more than 24 h. The results from both rat and pig oral mucosa repair models demonstrate that this new gel adhesive creates a favorable microenvironment for tissue repair and can shorten tissue healing time. This study thus illustrates a therapeutic strategy with the potential to advance the treatment of oral mucosal defects in the clinic.

An NIR photothermal-responsive hybrid hydrogel for enhanced wound healing

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Recent Advances in Mucoadhesive Interface Materials, Mucoadhesion Characterization, and Technologies

“…[ 206,207 ] This is directly related to use and applications of mussel protein catecholic amino acid 3,4‐dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPA) in mucoadhesion systems. [ 114,208 ] The catechol groups in DOPA can easily establish either covalent or noncovalent bonds over mucus.…”

Hydrogels for the treatment of oral and maxillofacial diseases: current research, challenges, and future directions

“…With the development of anesthetics and drug delivery platform, needle-free topical anesthesia based on oral mucosa adhesion hydrogels has been tried to replace conventional local injection anesthesia in oral treatments to solve the problems of pain and side effects of injection. One of the major challenges of oral mucoadhesive hydrogels is the moist and highly dynamic oral environment 73 . The hydrogels need to exert the ability of firmly adhesion to the surface of the moist oral internal environment, resisting external forces without separating from the oral mucosa, and being thin and tensile to avoid discomfort of tongue and oral mucosa.…”