Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance
The delayed healing and infection risks associated with chronic wounds and burns pose significant clinical challenges. Traditional dressings provide basic coverage but lack the bioactive properties needed for tissue regeneration and antimicrobial protection. In this study, we developed zinc alginate...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Gels |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/427 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1850167541025996800 |
|---|---|
| author | Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandra Cătălina Bîrcă George Dan Mogoşanu Marius Rădulescu Alina Maria Holban Daniela Manuc Adina Alberts Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu Laurenţiu Mogoantă |
| author_facet | Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandra Cătălina Bîrcă George Dan Mogoşanu Marius Rădulescu Alina Maria Holban Daniela Manuc Adina Alberts Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu Laurenţiu Mogoantă |
| author_sort | Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The delayed healing and infection risks associated with chronic wounds and burns pose significant clinical challenges. Traditional dressings provide basic coverage but lack the bioactive properties needed for tissue regeneration and antimicrobial protection. In this study, we developed zinc alginate hydrogel-coated traditional wound dressings (WD@AlgZn) and evaluated their physicochemical properties, antimicrobial performance, and in vivo healing efficacy. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed a uniform coating of the zinc alginate network on dressing fibers, while Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the successful incorporation of zinc ions. Antimicrobial assays further demonstrated that WD@AlgZn reduced bacterial loads (CFU/mL counts) by several orders of magnitude for both <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> and <i>Escherichia coli</i> compared to uncoated controls. An in vivo rat burn wound model exhibited accelerated wound closure when using WD@AlgZn dressings compared to conventional wound care approaches, achieving a 90.75% healing rate by day 21, significantly outperforming the silver sulfadiazine (52.32%), uncoated-dressing (46.58%), and spontaneous-healing (37.25%) groups. Histological analysis confirmed enhanced re-epithelialization, neovascularization, and reduced inflammation in WD@AlgZn-treated tissues. The findings suggest that WD@AlgZn offers a promising alternative for advanced wound management, combining structural robustness with bioactive properties to support efficient wound healing and infection control. These results provide valuable insights into the potential clinical applications of metal-ion cross-linked biopolymeric hydrogel dressings for next-generation wound care strategies. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a160b824ea2f4b388ead623de210a480 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2310-2861 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Gels |
| spelling | doaj-art-a160b824ea2f4b388ead623de210a4802025-08-20T02:21:11ZengMDPI AGGels2310-28612025-06-0111642710.3390/gels11060427Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo PerformanceAdelina-Gabriela Niculescu0Alexandra Cătălina Bîrcă1George Dan Mogoşanu2Marius Rădulescu3Alina Maria Holban4Daniela Manuc5Adina Alberts6Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu7Laurenţiu Mogoantă8Department of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Pharmacognosy and Phytotherapy, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, RomaniaDepartment of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Bucharest, 91–95 Independenţei Avenue, 050095 Bucharest, RomaniaCarol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 050474 Bucharest, RomaniaCarol Davila University of Medicine and Pharmacy, 050474 Bucharest, RomaniaDepartment of Science and Engineering of Oxide Materials and Nanomaterials, National University of Science and Technology Politehnica Bucharest, 011061 Bucharest, RomaniaResearch Center for Microscopic Morphology and Immunology, University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Craiova, 2 Petru Rareş Street, 200349 Craiova, RomaniaThe delayed healing and infection risks associated with chronic wounds and burns pose significant clinical challenges. Traditional dressings provide basic coverage but lack the bioactive properties needed for tissue regeneration and antimicrobial protection. In this study, we developed zinc alginate hydrogel-coated traditional wound dressings (WD@AlgZn) and evaluated their physicochemical properties, antimicrobial performance, and in vivo healing efficacy. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed a uniform coating of the zinc alginate network on dressing fibers, while Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) confirmed the successful incorporation of zinc ions. Antimicrobial assays further demonstrated that WD@AlgZn reduced bacterial loads (CFU/mL counts) by several orders of magnitude for both <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> and <i>Escherichia coli</i> compared to uncoated controls. An in vivo rat burn wound model exhibited accelerated wound closure when using WD@AlgZn dressings compared to conventional wound care approaches, achieving a 90.75% healing rate by day 21, significantly outperforming the silver sulfadiazine (52.32%), uncoated-dressing (46.58%), and spontaneous-healing (37.25%) groups. Histological analysis confirmed enhanced re-epithelialization, neovascularization, and reduced inflammation in WD@AlgZn-treated tissues. The findings suggest that WD@AlgZn offers a promising alternative for advanced wound management, combining structural robustness with bioactive properties to support efficient wound healing and infection control. These results provide valuable insights into the potential clinical applications of metal-ion cross-linked biopolymeric hydrogel dressings for next-generation wound care strategies.https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/427zinc alginatewound healingbioactive wound dressingsantimicrobial propertiesburn wound treatmentfibroblast proliferation |
| spellingShingle | Adelina-Gabriela Niculescu Alexandra Cătălina Bîrcă George Dan Mogoşanu Marius Rădulescu Alina Maria Holban Daniela Manuc Adina Alberts Alexandru Mihai Grumezescu Laurenţiu Mogoantă Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance Gels zinc alginate wound healing bioactive wound dressings antimicrobial properties burn wound treatment fibroblast proliferation |
| title | Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance |
| title_full | Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance |
| title_fullStr | Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance |
| title_full_unstemmed | Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance |
| title_short | Zinc Alginate Hydrogel-Coated Wound Dressings: Fabrication, Characterization, and Evaluation of Anti-Infective and In Vivo Performance |
| title_sort | zinc alginate hydrogel coated wound dressings fabrication characterization and evaluation of anti infective and in vivo performance |
| topic | zinc alginate wound healing bioactive wound dressings antimicrobial properties burn wound treatment fibroblast proliferation |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2310-2861/11/6/427 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT adelinagabrielaniculescu zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT alexandracatalinabirca zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT georgedanmogosanu zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT mariusradulescu zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT alinamariaholban zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT danielamanuc zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT adinaalberts zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT alexandrumihaigrumezescu zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance AT laurentiumogoanta zincalginatehydrogelcoatedwounddressingsfabricationcharacterizationandevaluationofantiinfectiveandinvivoperformance |