Detection of Redox State Evolution during Wound Healing Process Based on a Redox-Sensitive Wound Dressing

To detect the redox state evolution during wound healing process, a redox-sensitive surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) probe was constructed by attaching anthraquinone as a redox-sensitive molecule onto gold nanoshells, and the redox-sensitive SERS probes were loaded on one surface of a chitosan membrane as a redox-sensitive wound dressing. The redox-sensitive wound dressing covered an acute wound as both a wound dressing and a redox state sensor. The spatiotemporal evolution of the redox states of the healing wound was obtained by collecting the SERS spectra of the SERS probes in situ and noninvasively. The domains with the lowest redox potential moved from the edge to the center of a wound during normal wound healing process, and high concentration of glucose blocked the movement of the domains and the healing process. The redox-sensitive wound dressing and the method of detecting redox states of the wound provide a new path for detection in vivo, which would benefit the understanding and therapy of wound healing and other pathophysiological processes.