Mitchell Karina, Panicker Sreejith S, Adler Calista L, O'Toole George A, Hixon Katherine R
Thayer School of Engineering, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
Gels. 2023 Nov 6;9(11):877. doi: 10.3390/gels9110877.
Honey has been used for centuries to reduce bacterial infection; Manuka honey (MH) possesses an additional antibacterial agent, Unique Manuka Factor (UMF). However, MH's physical properties challenge delivery to the wound site. Tissue-engineered scaffolds (cryogels/hydrogels) provide a potential vehicle for MH delivery, but effects on bacterial clearance and biofilm formation demand further examination. MH (0, 1, 5, or 10%) was incorporated into both chitosan-gelatin (1:4 ratio; 4%) cryogels and hydrogels. To assess physical changes, all scaffolds were imaged with scanning electron microscopy and subjected to swell testing to quantify pore size and rehydration potential, respectively. As MH concentration increased, both pore size and scaffold swelling capacity decreased. Both bacterial clearance and biofilm formation were also assessed, along with cellular infiltration. Bacterial clearance testing with demonstrated that MH cryogels are superior to 0% control, indicating the potential to perform well against Gram-positive bacteria. However, higher concentrations of MH resulted in cell death over time. These results support our hypothesis that MH release from 5% cryogels would induce reduced viability for four bacteria species without compromising scaffold properties. These outcomes assist in the development of a standard of practice for incorporating MH into scaffolds and the evaluation of biofilm reduction.
几个世纪以来，蜂蜜一直被用于减少细菌感染；麦卢卡蜂蜜（MH）含有一种额外的抗菌剂，即独特麦卢卡因子（UMF）。然而，MH的物理性质对其输送至伤口部位构成了挑战。组织工程支架（冷冻凝胶/水凝胶）为MH的输送提供了一种潜在的载体，但对细菌清除和生物膜形成的影响需要进一步研究。将MH（0%、1%、5%或10%）掺入壳聚糖-明胶（1:4比例；4%）冷冻凝胶和水凝胶中。为了评估物理变化，所有支架均用扫描电子显微镜成像，并分别进行溶胀测试以量化孔径和再水化潜力。随着MH浓度的增加，孔径和支架溶胀能力均降低。同时还评估了细菌清除、生物膜形成以及细胞浸润情况。用……进行的细菌清除测试表明，MH冷冻凝胶优于0%的对照组，表明其对革兰氏阳性菌有良好的抗菌潜力。然而，随着时间的推移，较高浓度的MH会导致细胞死亡。这些结果支持了我们的假设，即5%冷冻凝胶释放的MH会降低四种细菌的活力，同时又不影响支架性能。这些结果有助于制定将MH掺入支架的实践标准以及评估生物膜减少情况。
