Adhesive and antibacterial dialdehyde microfibrillated cellulose/gelatin hydrogel incorporating core-shell structured AgNPs@PA for wound management

Antibacterial hydrogels have garnered significant attention in wound healing research, yet the development of multifunctional wound dressings remains a challenge. In this work, we designed a gelatin-based composite hydrogel with exceptional antibacterial efficacy, robust anti-oxidant capacity, and strong adhesive properties, tailored for advanced wound management. The hydrogel incorporates dialdehyde microfibrillated cellulose (DAMFC) to enhance its mechanical strength through fibril reinforcement and Schiff-base reactions between DAMFC's aldehyde groups and gelatin's amide chains. Additionally, proanthocyanidin (PA) was employed as both a reducing agent and a capping layer for the green synthesis of nanosilver particles (AgNPs@PA). The resulting AgNPs@PA/DAMFC/gelatin composite hydrogel exhibited outstanding mechanical properties, including a tensile strength of 300 kPa and an elongation at break of 250 %, alongside excellent adhesion (18 kPa) and self-healing capability (70 %), ensuring durable wound protection. Remarkably, AgNPs@PA possess excellent antioxidant capacity (effective DPPH and ABTS radical scavenging) and antibacterial properties (antibacterial rate > 99 %). This feature effectively mitigates wound inflammation and accelerates the healing process (by day 12, wound closure was 92 %). Collectively, the AgNPs@PA/DAMFC/gelatin hydrogel demonstrates immense potential as a multifunctional wound dressing, offering a promising solution for advanced wound care applications.