Customizable glucose-responsive gelatin methacryloyl-based hydrogel microneedle patches for antibacterial therapy and...

In this work, a glucose-responsive hydrogel microneedle has been developed by combining 3D-printed molds with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), enabling on-demand adjustment of microneedle shape, height (500-900 μm) and base area (10-1000 mm²). The hydrogel microneedles are fabricated from gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and poly (ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA), loaded with glucose oxidase (GOx) as the responsive component and molybdenum disulfide (MoS₂) as the catalyst. The GelMA-PEGDA hydrogel for microneedles exhibits a high compressive strength of 1.45 MPa and demonstrates excellent drug-loading and sustained-release capabilities, releasing 55 % of its doxycycline load within 90 min. The GOx/MoS₂ microneedle system shows a high antibacterial efficiency (91.1 %) against Staphylococcus aureus and durable effect (>6 days) in the long-term inhibition zone tests. In vitro cellular experiments demonstrate that these microneedles exhibit low biotoxicity. Further in vivo animal experiments confirm promoted wound healing and antibacterial efficacy, with microneedle-treated wounds exhibiting a 19 % higher healing rate compared to the control group after 7 days. This work provides a method for the customized and rapid fabrication of microneedles for various application, demonstrating great potential for reducing bacterial infections and promoting healing in diabetic wounds. Next-generation microneedle research may explore integrated sensing or real-time monitoring to enhance the therapeutic efficacy.