Multifunctional Dressing Integrating Local Drug Delivery, Self-Powered Electrical Stimulation, and Exudate Management...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Regenerative Medicine

Background:

• Chronic diabetic wounds present challenges like infection, exudate, and poor regeneration.
• Current treatments often fail to address these multifactorial issues effectively.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a multifunctional microneedle-triboelectric nanogenerator (MN-TENG) platform for enhanced diabetic wound healing.
• To integrate localized antibacterial therapy, self-powered electrical stimulation, and exudate management into a single device.

Main Methods:

• Designed dissolvable microneedles loaded with ciprofloxacin hydrochloride for sustained antibiotic release.
• Constructed a triboelectric nanogenerator using polyurethane foam and copper for electrical stimulation.
• Utilized the porous foam structure for high exudate absorption.

Main Results:

• The MN-TENG system demonstrated good cytocompatibility and significant antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
• In vitro studies showed promotion of fibroblast migration.
• In vivo diabetic wound models exhibited accelerated wound closure (approx. 35% improvement), reduced bacterial load, and enhanced tissue regeneration.

Conclusions:

• The integrated MN-TENG platform offers a promising, multifunctional approach for managing infected chronic diabetic wounds.
• This technology effectively addresses key challenges including bacterial infection, exudate accumulation, and impaired tissue regeneration.
• The self-powered, localized treatment strategy holds potential for improving wound healing outcomes.