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Published on: March 1, 2013
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Chitosan Schiff bases-based polyelectrolyte complexes with graphene quantum dots and their prospective biomedical
Amira A Hamed1, Gamal R Saad1, Ismail A Abdelhamid1
1Chemistry Department, Faculty of Science, Cairo University, Cairo 12613, Egypt.
International Journal of Biological Macromolecules
|April 4, 2022
Summary
Novel chitosan-based polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) show potent antibacterial activity against H. pylori and promote wound healing. One PEC derivative demonstrated significant H. pylori inhibition and selective activity against the HpIMPDH enzyme.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Medicinal Chemistry
- Nanotechnology
Background:
- Chitosan (Cs) is a versatile biopolymer with potential in biomedical applications.
- Schiff base derivatives offer tunable properties for advanced material development.
- Polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) incorporating graphene quantum dots (GQDs) can enhance material functionality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize novel chitosan bis-aldehyde Schiff base derivatives.
- To develop semi-interpenetrating polymer network (semi-IPN) polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) using these derivatives, carboxymethyl chitosan (CMC), and GQDs.
- To evaluate the antibacterial, wound healing, and enzyme inhibitory properties of the developed PECs.
Main Methods:
- Synthesis of Cs bis-aldehyde Schiff base derivatives via condensation reactions.
- Formation of semi-IPN PECs by blending Cs derivatives with CMC and GQDs.
- Characterization of molecular structure and physicochemical properties.
- In vitro assessment of antibacterial activity against H. pylori.
- In vitro wound healing assays.
- In vitro inhibitory assay against Inosine 5'-monophosphate dehydrogenase (IMPDH) enzyme.
Main Results:
- The synthesized Cs derivatives were successfully incorporated into PECs with CMC and GQDs.
- PECs exhibited promising in vitro wound healing capabilities, with one amide-linked Schiff base PEC showing accelerated wound closure.
- A minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) of 0.98 μg/ml was achieved for a specific PEC against H. pylori, demonstrating 100% growth inhibition.
- The selected PEC derivative displayed potent and selective inhibition against the H. pylori IMPDH (HpIMPDH) enzyme (IC50 = 0.65 μM) with minimal activity against the human IMPDH2 (hIMPDH2) enzyme (IC50 > 10 μM).
Conclusions:
- Novel chitosan-based PECs possess significant potential as antibacterial agents against H. pylori.
- These PECs demonstrate efficacy in promoting in vitro wound healing.
- The developed materials exhibit selective inhibition of the HpIMPDH enzyme, suggesting therapeutic applications in H. pylori infections.

