Bioactive bacterial cellulose wound dressings for burns with collagen in-situ and chitosan ex-situ impregnation

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a biopolymer that commonly used for wound dressings regarding to its high in-vitro and in-vivo biocompatibility. Moreover, the three-dimensional fibers in BC become an advantageous for bioactive wound dressing application as they serve as templates for impregnation other supportive materials. Chitosan and collagen are two of the materials that can be impregnated to optimize the BC properties for serve as wound dressing material. Collagen can help skin cells grow on the wound sites, where chitosan has anti-bacterial properties and can bind red blood cells. BC-based wound dressings were made by impregnating collagen via in-situ method followed by immersing chitosan via ex-situ method into BC fibers for 24 h. The intermolecular interactions of amine groups in the wound dressing were confirmed by FTIR. The XRD diffractogram showed wider peaks at 14.2 degrees, 16.6 degrees, and 22.4 degrees due to the presence of collagen and chitosan molecules in the BC fibers. SEM images confirmed that chitosan and collagen could penetrate BC fibers well. Other tests, such as water content, porosity, antibacterial properties, and haemocompatibility, indicated that the wound dressing was non-hemolytic. In-vivo test indicated that BC/collagen/chitosan wound dressing supported the wound healing process on second degree burn.

Automated summary

Bacterial cellulose (BC) is a biopolymer commonly used as wound dressing due to its high biocompatibility. Chitosan and collagen can be impregnated into BC fibers to optimize its properties. The BC-based wound dressing showed good intermolecular interactions and penetration of chitosan and collagen, as confirmed by FTIR and SEM. Other tests demonstrated the non-hemolytic nature and effectiveness of the wound dressing. In-vivo test showed that BC/collagen/chitosan wound dressing supported wound healing in second degree burns.