Octopus‐Inspired Adaptive Molecular Motion for Synergistic Photothermal and Nitric Oxide Antibacterial Therapy in Diabetic Wound Repair

Abstract

Abstract Bacterial infections, especially those from drug‐resistant strains, pose a significant threat to healing diabetic skin injuries, with current treatments being intricated and often unsatisfactory. Inspired by octopuses, a biomimetic material using α‐cyclodextrin (α‐CD) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) assembled with graphene oxide end‐capped polyrotaxanes (GO‐PR) is developed, where α‐CD mimics the flexible tentacles of an octopus. Further, α‐CD is cationically modified with polyethyleneimine (PEI) to resemble octopus suction cups, creating GO‐PRP, which effectively captures and adheres to bacteria. Importantly, to emulate an octopus's ink defense, GO‐PRP is used as a carrier for nitric oxide (NO), resulting in GO‐PRP/NONOate. Utilizing the photothermal conversion of GO, near‐infrared light exposure triggers rapid heating and NO release, providing efficient antibacterial activity and biofilm dispersion, significantly reducing inflammation in diabetic skin injuries in type I rats. During wound healing, sustained NO release promotes vascular endothelial growth factor production and blood vessel regeneration, enhancing collagen formation and shortening the healing time for diabetic skin infections. Thus, octopus‐inspired GO‐PRP/NONOate emerges as a novel biomaterial for treating drug‐resistant bacterial infections in diabetic wounds in the biomedical field.