Integration of antibacterial itaconic acid derived carbon dots into asiaticoside hydrogel with antioxidant ability for controllable and effective treating Pseudomonas aeruginosa infected burn wound

Burn wounds often cause complex skin injuries characterized by persistent bacterial colonization and oxidative stress, which complicates the process of timely healing. Effective local treatments that simultaneously exert antibacterial and antioxidant activities are crucial for treating burn wounds. Herein, a herbal-based hydrogel was developed through the crosslinking of lipoic acid (LA) and asiaticoside (ASI), integrated with antibacterial itaconic acid-derived carbon dots (I-CDs) to form a composite hydrogel designated as I-CDs@LA-ASI. I-CDs@LA-ASI demonstrated excellent biodegradability, biocompatibility, and stable rheological properties. LA-ASI exhibited potent antioxidant properties against reactive oxygen species (ROS). I-CDs@LA-ASI slowly degraded and fully released I-CDs in 7 days. Antibacterial assays demonstrated that I-CDs@LA-ASI effectively inhibited Pseudomonas aeruginosa ( P. aeruginosa ) and its multidrug-resistant bacteria, attributed to the low minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of I-CDs against bacteria. Moreover, I-CDs@LA-ASI significantly reduced ROS levels in H 2 O 2 -induced cells, markedly improved the mitochondrial membrane potential and reduced apoptosis. Additionally, I-CDs@LA-ASI promoted cell migration, as demonstrated by scratch assays and Transwell migration assays. I-CDs@LA-ASI further demonstrated significant wound healing efficacy in a P. aeruginosa -infected burn wound model by effective bacterial load reduction, promoting tissue repair, and enhancing angiogenesis. This integrated hydrogel shows great potential for treating complex skin injuries, especially in burn wound infections, suggesting important application prospect.