journal article·2025-10-01

Rhein-Integrated Extracellular Matrix-Mimetic Hydrogel for Accelerated Healing of Infected Wounds within 7 Days

Liuyan Tang, Jinwei Cao, Ningning Li, Hao Yu, Ruiqi Zhang, Shengcai Qi, Zhuyun Li, Run-Wei Li, Yuezhou Zhang

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces· Volume 17· Issue 39
Publisher page

Abstract

Treating chronic wounds remains a significant challenge due to persistent bacterial infections, prolonged inflammation, and inadequate mechanical adaptability, all of which severely impede tissue repair. Despite significant advancements in wound care, existing wound dressings struggle to rapidly heal infected wounds due to their inability to simultaneously eradicate bacterial biofilms, modulate inflammation, and provide sufficient mechanical adaptability to dynamic wound environments. Here, we develop a novel egg white (EW)-based hydrogel reinforced with oxidized dextran (ODex) and Rhein to overcome these limitations. ODex forms a double network with EW protein via Schiff base reaction to facilitate keratinocyte and fibroblast attachment, proliferation, and migration, thus promoting re-epithelialization and tissue regeneration. The mechanical properties of the EW-based hydrogel were further improved by incorporating glycerol and metal ions (Cu 2+ and Zn 2+ ), achieving a maximum compressive stress approximately 9 times that of the pristine EW hydrogel. To enhance the anti-inflammatory properties, the dissolution of Rhein was optimized by coordinating with a weak alkalinity gelling solution. Consequently, the biomacromolecule-dominated hydrogel demonstrates broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity, along with significant anti-inflammatory effects. The infected wounds treated with our EW-based hydrogel achieve an impressive 95% healing within just 7 days, demonstrating its rapid and effective therapeutic potential in treating and managing bacterial-infected wounds.
Source: openalex_inverted_index · Quality: baseline

Research context

OpenAlex topics: Wound Healing and Treatments · Electrospun Nanofibers in Biomedical Applications · Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

SciVX discovery tags are terminology-based. OpenAlex topics are source-provided classifications.

Affiliations

Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics (FSCFE), Xi’an Institute of Flexible Electronics (IFE) and Xi’an Institute of Biomedical Materials & Engineering (IBME), Northwestern Polytechnical University, 127 West Youyi Road, Xi’an 710072, China

Innovative Center for Flexible Devices (iFLEX), Max Planck-NTU Joint Lab for Artificial Senses, School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore

Ningbo Institute of Materials Technology and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1219 West Zhongguan Road, Ningbo 315201, China

Department of Prothodontics, Shanghai Stomatological Hospital, Fudan University, 356 Beijing East Road, Shanghai 200040, China

Department of Stomatology, Shanghai Tenth People’s Hospital, School of Medicine

Tongji University

Ningbo Institute of Digital Twin, Eastern Institute of Technology, Ningbo, No.568 Tongxin Road, Zhenhai District, Ningbo, Zhejiang 315200, China

Ningbo Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University, Frontiers Science Center for Flexible Electronics (FSCFE), Key laboratory of Flexible Electronics of Zhejiang Province, Ningbo Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University, 218 Qingyi Road, Ningbo 315103, China

Funding

Natural Science Foundation of Ningbo Municipality · Ministry of Science and Technology of the People's Republic of China · Ningbo Municipal Bureau of Science and Technology · National Natural Science Foundation of China

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