A poly(γ‐glutamic acid)‐based hydrogel loaded with superoxide dismutase for wound healing

Abstract

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study was to develop a poly(γ‐glutamic acid) (γ‐PGA)‐based hydrogel loaded with superoxide dismutase (SOD) to accelerate wound healing. First, γ‐PGA was modified with taurine (γ‐PGAS), and then the SOD‐loaded γ‐PGAS/γ‐PGA hydrogel (SOD‐PGAS/PGA‐H) was prepared by cross‐linking of ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether. The swelling behavior and water vapor transmission rate revealed that PGAS/PGA‐H could create a moist environment for wound surface. In vitro kinetics of SOD release showed that SOD released from PGAS/PGA‐H maintained high activity and SOD‐PGAS/PGA‐H effectively scavenged the superoxide anion. The results of our fibroblast proliferation experiments showed that PGAS/PGA‐H had good cytocompatibility. The effects of SOD‐PGAS/PGA‐H on wound healing were examined in a Type I diabetic rat model with full‐thickness wounds. Twenty‐one days after grafted to wounds, SOD‐PGAS/PGA‐H exhibited a higher rate of wound healing than control group and showed increased collagen deposition and epithelialization. SOD‐PGAS/PGA‐H seems to promote better wound healing and thus might be a promising candidate for wound healing management. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015 , 132 , 42033.