Wound Dressings Based on Sodium Alginate-Polyvinyl Alcohol-Moringa oleifera Extracts

Assessing the efficacy of curcumin-loaded alginate hydrogel on skin wound healing: A gene expression analysis

Skin tissue engineering has gained significant attention as a promising alternative to traditional treatments for skin injuries. In this study, we developed 3D hydrogel-based scaffolds, Alginate, incorporating different concentrations of Curcumin and evaluated their properties, including morphology, swelling behavior, weight loss, as well as hemo- and cytocompatibility. Furthermore, we investigated the therapeutic potential of Alginate hydrogel containing different amounts of Curcumin using an in vitro wound healing model. The prepared hydrogels exhibited remarkable characteristics, SEM showed that the pore size of hydrogels was 134.64 μm with interconnected pores, making it conducive for cellular infiltration and nutrient exchange. Moreover, hydrogels demonstrated excellent biodegradability, losing 63.5% of its weight over 14 days. In addition, the prepared hydrogels had a stable release of curcumin for 3 days. The results also show the hemocompatibility of prepared hydrogels and a low amount of blood clotting. To assess the efficacy of the developed hydrogels, 3T3 fibroblast growth was examined during various incubation times. The results indicated that the inclusion of Curcumin at a concentration of 0.1 mg/mL positively influenced cellular behavior. The animal study showed that Alginate hydrogel containing 0.1 mg/mL curcumin had high wound closure(more than 80%) after 14 days. In addition, it showed up-regulation of essential wound healing genes, including TGFβ1 and VEGF, promoting tissue repair and angiogenesis. Furthermore, the treated group exhibited down-regulation of MMP9 gene expression, indicating a reduction in matrix degradation and inflammation. The observed cellular responses and gene expression changes substantiate the therapeutic efficacy of prepared hydrogels. Consequently, our study showed the healing effect of alginate-based hydrogel containing Curcumin on skin injuries.

Preparation of strong, tough and conductive soy protein isolate/poly(vinyl alcohol)-based hydrogel via the synergy of biomineralization and salting out

Conductive hydrogels have shown a great potential in the field of flexible electronic devices. However, conductive hydrogels prepare by traditional methods are difficult to combine high strength and toughness, which limits their application in various fields. In this study, a strategy for preparing conductive hydrogels with high strength and toughness by using the synergistic effect of biomineralization and salting-out was pioneered. In simple terms, by immersing the CaCl2 doped soy protein isolate/poly(vinyl alcohol)/dimethyl sulfoxide (SPI/PVA/DMSO) hydrogel in Na2CO3 and Na3Cit complex solution, the biomineralization aroused by Ca2+ and CO32-, and the salting-out effect of both NaCl and Na3Cit would enhance the mechanical properties of SPI/PVA/DMSO hydrogel. Meanwhile, the ionic conductivity of the hydrogel would also increase due the introduction of cation and anion. The mechanical and electrical properties of SPI/PVA/DMSO/CaCO3/Na3Cit hydrogels were significantly enhanced by the synergistic effect of biomineralization and salting-out. The optimum tensile strength, toughness, Young's modulus and ionic conductivity of the hydrogel were 1.4 ± 0.08 MPa, 0.51 ± 0.04 MPa and 1.46 ± 0.01 S/m, respectively. The SPI/PVA/DMSO/CaCO3/Na3Cit hydrogel was assembled into a strain sensor. The strain sensor had good sensitivity (GF = 3.18, strain in 20 %-500 %) and could be used to accurately detect various human movements.

Innovative Materials with Possible Applications in the Wound Dressings Field: Alginate-Based Films with Moringa oleifera Extract

For a long time, biopolymers have proven their effectiveness in the development of materials with various applications, lately those intended for the biomedical and pharmaceutical industries, due to their high biocompatibility and non-toxic, non-allergenic, and non-immunogenic nature. The ability to incorporate various active substances in this matrix has yielded materials with characteristics that are far superior to those of classic, conventional ones. The beneficial effects of consuming Moringa oleifera have promoted the use of this plant, from Ayurvedic to classical medicine. The addition of such compounds in the materials intended for the treatment of surface wounds may represent the future of the development of innovative dressings. This study followed the development of materials based on sodium alginate and moringa powder or essential oil for use as dressings, pads, or sheets. Thus, three materials with the addition of 10-30% moringa powder and three materials with the addition of 10-30% essential oil were obtained. The data were compared with those of the control sample, with sodium alginate and plasticizer. The microtopography indicated that the materials have a homogeneous matrix that allows them to incorporate and maintain natural compounds with prolonged release. For example, the sample with 30% moringa essential oil kept its initial shape and did not disintegrate, although the swelling ratio value reached 4800% after 20 min. After testing the mechanical properties, the same sample had the best tensile strength (TS = 0.248 MPa) and elongation (31.41%), which is important for the flexibility of the dressing. The same sample exhibited a very high antioxidant capacity (60.78% inhibition). The materials obtained with moringa powder added presented good values of physical and mechanical properties, which supports their use as wound dressings for short-term application and the release of embedded compounds. According to the obtained results, all the biopolymeric materials with moringa added can be used as dressings for different wound types.