Bacterial cellulose-FucoPol composite hydrogel dressings for advanced wound treatment

Effective wound management relies on dressings that prevent infection and facilitate healing, which has driven research into advanced, cost-effective therapeutic dressings. Bacterial cellulose (BC) is highly valued for use in wound dressings given its mechanical strength, nanoporous structure, high water-holding capacity, and excellent biocompatibility. While BC promotes debridement and maintains moisture for wound healing, it lacks essential bio-functional properties, which can be addressed through incorporation of other compounds. FucoPol (FP), a fucose-rich natural polysaccharide, offers wound-healing potential, alongside adhesive, photoprotective, and bioactive properties. In this study, BC and FP were combined to develop an active wound dressing, leveraging the unique properties of each polymer. BC was impregnated with FP, which was gelled using Fe³⁺ as a crosslinking agent. Increasing FP concentration (1.0, 1.5, 2.0 wt%) improved the composite's mechanical strength, but reduced its crystallinity index (43-38 %), water holding capacity (72-39 g/g) and water retention, compared to BC by itself (crystallinity index: 59 %; water holding capacity: 123 g/g). The BC/FP composite dressings (containing 13-25 % FP) demonstrated non-cytotoxicity, with cell viability exceeding 80 % in HaCaT cells (human skin keratinocytes) and NCTC clone L929 (mouse fibroblast) cell lines, and enhanced both cell lines' adhesion, thus supporting their suitability for active wound dressing applications.