Recent Advances in Chitosan‐Based Metal Nanocomposites for Wound Healing Applications

Abstract

Chitosan (CS) has been extensively studied as a natural polymer, in the field of wound repair, due to its useful properties, which include a lack of toxicity and stimulation, excellent biological affinity, degradability, and promotion of collagen deposition. However, inferior mechanical strength and moderate antibacterial properties are the drawbacks restricting its further clinical application. Many researchers have adopted the use of nanotechnology, in particular metallic nanoparticles (MNPs), in order to improve the mechanical strength and specific antibacterial properties of chitosan composites, with promising results. Furthermore, chitosan naturally functions as a reducing agent for MNPs, which can also reduce cytotoxicity. Thus, CS, in combination with MNPs, exhibits antibacterial activity, excellent mechanical strength, and anti-inflammatory properties, and it has great potential to accelerate the process of wound healing. This review discusses the current use of CS and MNPs in wound healing and emphasises the synergy and the advantages for various applications in wound healing.

Acceleration of Healing in Full-Thickness Wound by Chitosan-Binding bFGF and Antimicrobial Peptide Modification Chitosan Membrane

“…The ideal wound dressing material should be biocompatible, inexpensive, readily available, and highly antibacterial. Among all polymers being explored, chitosan (CS), a natural cationic polymer composed of N-glucosamine and N-acetylglucosamine, has attracted widespread attention in the field of wound treatment due to its unique biological characteristics ( Wang et al, 2020 ). CS is considered an ideal wound dressing material because of its non-toxic, biodegradable, and antibacterial properties and its positive effect on skin tissue regeneration.…”

Versatile Use of Chitosan and Hyaluronan in Medicine

“…To overcome the poor solubility of chitosan in water, its more rapid in vivo depolymerization and degradation, its hemo-incompatibility, and also its insufficient antimicrobial properties, chitosan derivatives have been synthesized as novel scaffold materials for tissue engineering. The major commercial applications of chitosan are in wound healing, which fulfills the characteristics as follows: no toxicity and no irritability, sufficient mechanical strength to prevent forming wrinkles, good moisture and air/water vapor permeability, biodegradability, and antibacterial properties against wound infection [ 18 , 81 ].…”

Enhanced Antibacterial and Antioxidant Properties of Chitosan Films Blended with Gallic Acid and Incorporated with Thymol Silver Nanoparticles

“…Damage to the integrity of the skin leads to the formation of a wound that can occur anywhere in the body and adapts to spontaneous wound healing (Sahiner et al 2017; Wang et al 2020). The largest external organ in the human body, the skin, plays a crucial role in protecting the body from mechanical damage and microbial invasion.…”

“…These collagen fires grow and mature to complete the wound healing process. In the event that wounds lead to infection could lead to serious problems, thus care for wound healing is essential (Wang et al 2020).…”