Emerging trends of nanotechnology-based drug delivery for wound healing

Wound healing is a complex, dynamic and multistep biological process involving haemostasis, inflammation, proliferation and remodelling, which can be severely compromised in chronic, infected, or non-healing wounds. Conventional wound care strategies often suffer from limitations such as poor drug stability, inadequate tissue penetration, frequent dressing changes and a lack of spatiotemporal control over therapeutic release. In recent years, nanotechnology-based drug delivery systems have emerged as promising platforms to overcome these challenges by enabling targeted, controlled and multifunctional therapeutic interventions. This comprehensive review highlights emerging trends in nanotechnology-driven approaches for wound healing, with a focus on their design and therapeutic potential across different stages of wound repair. The review systematically discusses major nanotechnological platforms, including electrospun nanofibers, advanced hydrogel systems, nanocomposites, polymeric micelles and a wide range of inorganic nanoparticles such as silver, gold, copper, silica and titanium dioxide nanoparticles. Additionally, advanced materials such as graphene and scaffold-based systems, including scaffold-integrated nanoparticles and hydrogel-based scaffolds, are critically examined for their roles in promoting angiogenesis, antimicrobial activity, cell migration and tissue regeneration. Ultimately, this review provides valuable insights into future perspectives and research directions, highlighting the need for multifunctional nanoplatforms to advance next-generation wound healing therapies.