Gallium ions incorporated silk fibroin hydrogel with antibacterial efficacy for promoting healing of Pseudomonas aeruginosa-infected wound
Hui Zheng, Zhida Huang, Tong‐Xin Chen, Ya‐Feng Sun, Shouqing Chen, Guangming Bu, Hongcai Guan
Abstract
The continual resistance to antibiotics and the generation of a series of bacterial infections has emerged as a global concern, which requires appropriate measures and therapeutics to address such a menace. Herein, we report on Silk fibroin (SF) hydrogel with good biocompatibility and biodegradability fabricated through the crosslinking of the SF of different concentrations with Gallium nitrate (Ga (NO 3 ) 3 ) against Pseudomonas aeruginosa . However, the SF: Ga = 500: 1 (w/w) (SF/Ga) demonstrated a good bactericidal and wound healing effect as a result of the moderate and prolonged release of the Ga 3+ following the gradual degradation of the hydrogel. The Ga 3+ , known for its innovative nature acted as a crosslinked agent and a therapeutic agent employing the “Trojan horse” strategy to effectively deal with the bacteria. Also, the Ga 3+ , which is positively charged neutralizes the negative potential value of the SF particles to reduce the charge and further induce the β-sheet formation in the protein structure, a characteristic of gelation in SF. The morphology showed a fabricated homogenous structure with greater storage modulus- G ’ with low loss modulus- G '' modulus demonstrating the mechanical performance and the ability of the SF/Ga hydrogel to hold their shape, at the same time allowing for the gradual release of Ga 3+ . A demonstration of biocompatibility, biodegradability, bactericidal effect and wound healing in in vitro and in vivo present the SF/Ga hydrogel as an appropriate platform for therapeutic and for antibacterial wound dressing.