Sodium Alginate Hydrogel Sponges Embedded with M2 Macrophages: An Adoptive Cell Therapy Strategy for Accelerated Diabetic Wound Healing

Hydrogels possess advantages for providing a moist wound environment and enabling drug or cell delivery. Wound healing is a complex, multistage process where macrophages play a pivotal role; they influence inflammation resolution, anti-inflammatory cytokine production, angiogenesis, and extracellular matrix remodeling. Combining hydrogel materials with adoptive M2 macrophages offers a promising adoptive cell therapy approach to accelerate healing. In the present study, sodium alginate, a natural polymer, was harnessed to create hydrogel sponges embedded with M2 macrophages for application to chronic wounds. Hydrogel sponges were capable of preserving the characteristics of M2 macrophages, secreting functional cellular factors, and maintaining viability. Hydrogel sponges loaded with M2 type macrophages could promote chronic wound healing in the back of type 2 diabetic mice. In vitro and in vivo experiments demonstrated that M2 macrophages successfully grew and proliferated within the hydrogel sponges, exhibiting anti-inflammatory effects, which is expected to offer a cell therapy approach to diabetic wound treatment.