Polyurethane foam containing rhEGF as a dressing material for healing diabetic wounds: Synthesis, characterization, in vitro and in vivo studies.
Diabetic wounds are a major health issue associated with diabetes mellitus. To surmount this issue, we developed polyurethane foams (PUFs) incorporating varying amounts of recombinant human epidermal growth factor (rhEGF) (rhEGF-PUFs) as a wound dressing for diabetic wounds. From electron microscopy images, it was found that the pore size of the rhEGF-PUFs surface (the wound contact layer) was less than 100μm, regardless of rhEGF content. The release of rhEGF from the PUFs was evaluated using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The result showed that the release of rhEGF was time and concentration dependent, i.e., the amount of released rhEGF significantly increased as the immersion time and the rhEGF content of the PUFs increased. In vitro cytotoxicity testing showed that rhEGF-PUFs increased the viability of HaCaT human keratinocytes and CCD986-sk human fibroblasts, which indicated that the incorporated rhEGF maintained its biological activity. In an in vitro scratch wound healing assay, the wound closure rate was faster in CCD986-sk human fibroblasts than in HaCaT human keratinocytes. Finally, the rhEGF-PUFs were evaluated as an in vivo treatment in a full-thickness wound model in diabetized Sprague-Dawley rats. The result indicated that compared with PUFs, rhEGF-PUFs accelerated wound healing by promoting wound contraction, re-epithelialization, collagen deposition and the formation of a skin appendage. These findings demonstrate that rhEGF-PUFs are a promising dressing for diabetic wounds.
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746, Republic of Korea.
Do Gi
DG
Pyun
Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746, Republic of Korea.
Hyun Jun
HJ
Choi
Biomedical Polymer R&D Institute, T&L, Co., Ltd., Anseong 456-812, Republic of Korea.
Hyoung Soon
HS
Yoon
School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746, Republic of Korea.
Thavasyappan
T
Thambi
School of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon 440-746, Republic of Korea. Electronic address: dslee@skku.edu.
Doo Sung
DS
Lee
D000818:Animals; D001458:Bandages; D002460:Cell Line; D048909:Diabetes Complications / Q000473:pathology*; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D011140:Polyurethanes / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000008:administration & dosage; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000187:drug effects*
D011140:Polyurethanes; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; D004815:Epidermal Growth Factor
Diabetic ulcer; Polyurethane foam; Recombinant human epidermal growth factor; Scratch wound healing; Wound healing