Antimicrobial peptide-loaded decellularized placental sponge as an excellent antibacterial skin substitute against XDR clinical isolates

Post-wound infections have remained a serious threat to society and healthcare worldwide. Attempts are still being made to develop an ideal antibacterial wound dressing with high wound-healing potential and strong antibacterial activity against extensively drug-resistant bacteria (XDR). In this study, a biological-based sponge was made from decellularized human placenta (DPS) and then loaded with different concentrations (0, 16 mu g/mL, 32 mu g/mL, 64 mu g/mL) of an antimicrobial peptide (AMP, CM11) to optimize an ideal antibacterial wound dressing. The decellularization of DPS was confirmed by histological evaluations and DNA content assay. The DPS loaded with different contents of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) showed uniform morphology under a scanning electron microscope (SEM) and cytobiocompatibility for human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells. Antibacterial assays indicated that the DPS/AMPs had antibacterial behavior against both standard strain and XDR Acinetobacter baumannii in a dose-dependent manner, as DPS loaded with 64 mu g/mL showed the highest bacterial growth inhibition zone and elimination of bacteria under SEM than DPS alone and DPS loaded with 16 mu g/mL and 32 mu g/mL AMP concentrations. The subcutaneous implantation of all constructs in the animal model demonstrated no sign of acute immune system reaction and graft rejection, indicating in vivo biocompatibility of the scaffolds. Our findings suggest the DPS loaded with 64 mu g/mL as an excellent antibacterial skin substitute, and now promises to proceed with pre-clinical and clinical investigations.

Automated summary

In this study, a biological-based sponge made from decellularized human placenta was loaded with different concentrations of an antimicrobial peptide to optimize an ideal antibacterial wound dressing. The sponge showed strong antibacterial activity against extensively drug-resistant bacteria, with the highest effect observed at a concentration of 64 μg/mL. Animal experiments demonstrated excellent in vivo biocompatibility of the material.