Improved biological activities of dual nanofibrous chitosan/bacterial cellulose wound dressing by a novel silver-based metal-organic framework

The worldwide menace of antibiotic-resistance bacteria could be weakened by development and utilization of impressive and multi-functional bactericidal materials. In this work, a novel silver-based metal-organic frame-work (SOF) was synthesized via a facile and environmentally-friendly process. Different amounts of the SOF nanoparticles incorporated in dual nanosized chitosan/bacterial cellulose (CS/BC) fibrous composites to make a hybrid antibacterial porous structure for mimicing the skin extracellular matrix. X-ray diffraction revealed the successful synthesis of the SOF and CS/BC-SOF nanocomposites using green solvents at ambient temperature. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed the presence of Ag species in the SOF structures. Electron mi-croscopy images showed-30 nm nanofibers of the CS/BC blend embedded with uniform distribution of the SOF nanoparticles. MTT assay demonstrated the best biocompatibility performance with cell viability of-94% for the CS/BC-25%SOF nanocomposite. Antibacterial tests indicated adequate and efficient antibacterial activity of all SOF-containing samples against E. coli and S. aureus strains. Animal in vivo studies demonstrated excellent healing with-74% wound closure for the wounds treated using CS/BC-25%SOF nanocomposite during the 2nd week after surgery. Hematoxylin and eosin staining revealed successful healing and tissue regeneration for the wounds treated using CS/BC-25%SOF nanocomposite. The results suggest that the new produced nano-composites, especially the CS/BC-25%SOF, can potentially be used as excellent platforms for wound dressing.

Automated summary

The novel silver-based metal-organic framework (SOF) was synthesized using an environmentally-friendly process, and it was incorporated into a dual nanosized chitosan/bacterial cellulose (CS/BC) fibrous composite. The resulting CS/BC-SOF nanocomposite showed excellent antibacterial activity against E. coli and S. aureus strains, and it also exhibited high biocompatibility and enhanced wound healing in animal studies. The synthesized nanocomposites have great potential for use as wound dressing platforms.