Hemostatic, biocompatible, and antibacterial non-animal fungal mushroom-based carboxymethyl chitosan-ZnO nanocomposite for wound-healing applications

Abstract

In this study, non-animal mushroom carboxymethyl chitosan (NAM-CMCS) was used as a natural polymer stabilizing agent in the ultrasonic preparation of a ZnO nanocomposite at ambient laboratory temperatures. The formation and morphology of the ZnO nanoparticles were investigated by applying FTIR, XRD, XPS, FE-SEM, and DLS techniques. The FTIR and XPS spectra confirmed the presence of NAM-CMCS functional groups and ZnO in the nanoparticles. The prepared NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticles were shown by FE-SEM to have a spherical shape and an average diameter of 18 ± 3.6 nm. The DLS-determined size distribution showed the NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticle size averaged 21 ± 2.9 nm. Finally, cytocompatibility, hemostasis, and antibacterial performance were assessed in vitro to evaluate the biological performance of NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticles. In vitro Prestoblue® assay and live/dead test results from skin fibroblast and keratinocytes confirmed the developed NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticles were biocompatible over a wide range of concentrations (0-500 μg/well). The NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticles exhibited synergetic antibacterial properties against Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) bacteria. Moreover, the nanoparticles showed hemostatic properties with good hemocompatibility. The overall excellent biological properties of NAM-CMCS-ZnO nanoparticles indicate its suitability for use in wound dressing applications.

Keywords: Antibacterial; Biocompatible; Carboxymethyl chitosan; Hemostatic; Wound dressing; ZnO.