Injectable, Biodegradable and Photothermal Hydrogel with Quorum Sensing Inhibitory Effects for Subcutaneous Fungal...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Infectious Diseases
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• Subcutaneous fungal infections are challenging due to deep invasion and biofilm formation.
• Existing treatments often struggle with efficacy and targeted delivery.
• Novel therapeutic strategies are needed for effective in situ management.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an injectable and biodegradable hydrogel for treating subcutaneous fungal infections.
• To engineer a hydrogel with bactericidal, quorum sensing inhibition, and antioxidant activities.
• To evaluate the in situ therapeutic efficacy of the hydrogel for wound healing.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of a hydrogel (BEPE) using bovine serum albumin (BSA), ε-polylysine, and epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG)-loaded mesoporous polydopamine (PDA) via near-infrared (NIR) light irradiation.
• Assessment of microbicidal effects against Candida albicans and Streptococcus mutans.
• Evaluation of antibiofilm activity by inhibiting microbial quorum sensing.
• In vivo studies on subcutaneous fungal infection models to assess tissue regeneration and wound healing.

Main Results:

• BEPE hydrogel demonstrated significant microbicidal effects (99.5% against C. albicans, 99.6% against S. mutans) through photothermal effects and ε-polylysine release.
• EGCG release effectively inhibited and destroyed biofilms, achieving 80.5% antibiofilm efficiency against C. albicans by disrupting quorum sensing.
• In vivo studies showed BEPE accelerated tissue regeneration, eliminated fungal infection, and reduced inflammation, promoting wound healing.

Conclusions:

• The developed biodegradable hydrogel (BEPE) offers a promising multifunctional therapeutic agent for subcutaneous fungal infections.
• The synergistic combination of photothermal therapy, antimicrobial release, and anti-biofilm activity provides an effective in situ treatment strategy.
• This approach facilitates the design of advanced microbicidal agents for challenging localized infections.