Biodegradable polyethylene glycol-based poly(β-amino ester) hydrogel for curcumin delivery in wound treatment

This report focused on synthesizing a biodegradable material based on poly(β-amino ester) hydrogel with curcumin loaded for application as a wound dressing treatment, as well as examining other physicochemical and physiological properties. The hydrogel was prepared via aza-Michael addition between cystamine and poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate with and without curcumin loaded during the process to improve bioactivity. Physicochemical analysis showed that the hydrogel had a stable structure and good swelling ability. SEM results indicated that the synthesized gel had little to no pores, suggesting that curcumin is released through the degradation of the hydrogel. Rheological analysis demonstrated that increasing the cross-linking density significantly enhanced the mechanical strength and gelation performance of the hydrogels. All formulations displayed typical elastic gel behavior (G' > G″), while highly cross-linked hydrogels formed more rigid but less deformable networks with accelerated gelation and improved structural stability. The 0.1% curcumin-loaded poly(β-amino ester) hydrogel exhibited the highest antioxidant activity and was confirmed to be non-hemolytic, have good cytocompatibility and be non-irritating to the mouse skin. In a murine wound model, the hydrogel promoted wound contraction and remarkable restoration of skin architecture such as increased epidermal thickness and hair follicle number, as evidenced by histological analysis. These findings suggest that the curcumin-loaded poly(β-amino ester) hydrogel is a promising drug delivery system, opening new applications in wound dressing for physiological wound healing in the future.