Natural self-healing injectable hydrogels loaded with exosomes and berberine for infected wound healing

Abstract

Complete and rapid healing of infected skin wounds remains a challenge in current clinical treatment. In this study, we prepared a self-healing injectable CK hydrogel by crosslinking two natural polysaccharides, carboxymethyl chitosan and oxidized konjac glucomannan, based on the Schiff base bond. To enhance the biological function of the hydrogel, we multi-functionalized hydrogen by loading it with berberine (BBR) and stem cell-derived exosomes (Exo), forming a composite hydrogel, CK@BBR&Exo, which could be injected directly into the wound through a needle and adhered to the wound. Furthermore, the self-healing properties of CK@BBR&Exo increased its usefulness and service life. Additionally, the drug-loaded CK@BBR&Exo hydrogel was versatile, inhibiting bacterial growth, regulating the inflammatory response, and promoting neovascularization in infected skin wounds, thus achieving the rapid healing of infected skin wounds. These results suggest that the CK@BBR&Exo-injectable self-healing hydrogel is an ideal dressing for treating infected skin wounds.

Keywords

• Self-healing hydrogels
• Natural polysaccharides
• Infected wounds
• Exosomes
• Berberine