A Multifunctional Nanozyme Integrating Antioxidant, Antimicrobial and Pro-Vascularity for Skin Wound Management

Abstract

Background

Skin wounds are a prevalent issue that can have severe health consequences if not treated correctly. Nanozymes offer a promising therapeutic approach for the treatment of skin wounds, owing to their advantages in regulating redox homeostasis to reduce oxidative damage and kill bacteria. These properties make them an effective treatment option for skin wounds. However, most of current nanozymes lack the capability to simultaneously address inflammation, oxidative stress, and bacterial infection during the wound healing process. There is still great potential for nanozymes to increase their therapeutic functional diversity and efficacy.

Methods

Herein, copper-doped hollow mesopores cerium oxide (Cu-HMCe) nanozymes with multifunctional of antioxidant, antimicrobial and pro-vascularity is successfully prepared. Cu-HMCe can be efficiently prepared through a simple and rapid solution method and displays sound physiological stability. The biocompatibility, pro-angiogenic, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties of Cu-HMCe were assessed. Moreover, a full-thickness skin defect infection model was utilized to investigate the wound healing capacity, as well as anti-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic properties of nanozymes in vivo.

Results

Both in vitro and in vivo experiments have substantiated Cu-HMCe’s remarkable biocompatibility. Moreover, Cu-HMCe possesses potent antioxidant enzyme-like catalytic activity, effectively clearing DPPH radicals (with a scavenging rate of 80%), hydroxyl radicals, and reactive oxygen species. Additionally, Cu-HMCe exhibits excellent antimicrobial and pro-angiogenic properties, with over 70% inhibition of both E. coli and S. aureus. These properties collectively promote wound healing, and the wound treated with Cu-HMCe achieved a closure rate of over 90% on the 14th day.

Conclusion

The results indicate that multifunctional Cu-HMCe with antioxidant, antimicrobial, and pro-angiogenic properties was successfully prepared and exhibited remarkable efficacy in promoting wound healing. This nanozymes providing a promising strategy for skin repair.

Keywords:

• Cu-HMCe nanozyme
• antioxidation
• antibacterial
• vascularization
• wound healing

Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge financial support from the Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation of Guangdong Province (Grant Number: 2023A1515012615), the Enterprise Joint Fund for Basic and Applied Basic Research of Guangdong Province (Grant Number: 2022A1515220157), the Project of Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine of Guangdong Province of China (Grant Number: 20231026), Guangzhou Natural Science Foundation (Grant Number: 202102021284), Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (Grant Number: 2021A1515111158) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Number: 32300962).

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.