Advances in the Physico-Chemical, Antimicrobial and Angiogenic Properties of Graphene-Oxide/Cellulose Nanocomposites for Wound Healing

Abstract

Graphene oxide (GO) and its reduced form (rGO) have recently attracted a fascinating interest due to their physico-chemical properties, which have opened up new and interesting opportunities in a wide range of biomedical applications, such as wound healing. It is worth noting that GO and rGO may offer a convenient access to its ready dispersion within various polymeric matrices (such as cellulose and its derivative forms), owing to their large surface area, based on a carbon skeleton with many functional groups (i.e., hydroxyl, carboxyl, epoxy bridge, and carbonyl moieties). This results in new synergic properties due to the presence of both components (GO or rGO and polymers), acting at different length-scales. Furthermore, they have shown efficient antimicrobial and angiogenic properties, mostly related to the intracellular formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are advantageous in wound care management. For this reason, GO or rGO integration in cellulose-based matrixes have allowed for designing highly advanced multifunctional hybrid nanocomposites with tailored properties. The current review aims to discuss a potential relationship between structural and physico-chemical properties (i.e., size, edge density, surface chemistry, hydrophilicity) of the nanocomposites with antimicrobials and angiogenic mechanisms that synergically influence the wound healing phenomenon, by paying particular attention to recent findings of GO or rGO/cellulose nanocomposites. Accordingly, after providing a general overview of cellulose and its derivatives, the production methods used for GO and rGO synthesis, the mechanisms that guide antimicrobial and angiogenic processes of tissue repair, as well as the most recent and remarkable outcomes on GO/cellulose scaffolds in wound healing applications, will be presented.

Exploring the Application of Graphene Oxide-Based Nanomaterials in the Repair of Osteoporotic Fractures

“…The Role of Drugs, Cells, and miRNA Loaded into GO-Based Nanomaterials GO-based nanocomposites are promising carriers for drugs, stem cells, microRNAs, and other therapeutic agents (Table 2). These nanocomposites can be employed in the treatment of various diseases and play a significant role in tumor inhibition, angiogenesis, bacterial growth inhibition, and tissue repair [74][75][76]. Therapeutic agents, such as bisphosphonates, parathyroid hormone, strontium, BMSCs, and microRNAs, can be utilized to balance the functions of osteoclasts and osteoblasts, shifting from overactive bone resorption to normal bone metabolism, thus improving the microenvironment of osteoporotic fractures [77].…”

Recent advancements in natural polymers‐based self‐healing nano‐materials for wound dressing

“…leads to the restoration of the material, effectively repairing the damage. [205][206][207] Feng and Wang (2022) successfully demonstrated the facile preparation of chitosan-graphene oxide (CSGO) hydrogels with injectability, self-healing, and adhesive properties, enabled by a series of noncovalent bonds. Through a detailed investigation into the gelation mechanism, it was found that the intercalation of chitosan (CS) chains between GO sheets led to weakened hydrogen bonds among CS chains.…”

“…Its mechanism involves various steps starting from the formation of oxygen vacancies, that is, when GO is exposed to stress or damage, oxygen atoms may be removed from the surface of the material, resulting in the formation of oxygen vacancies. This triggers a self‐healing reaction, which involves the migration of oxygen atoms from the neighboring areas to the damaged region, which leads to the restoration of the material, effectively repairing the damage 205–207 …”

Exploring nanocomposites for controlling infectious microorganisms: charting the path forward in antimicrobial strategies

“…However, the effectiveness is particularly pronounced against Gram-positive bacteria ( Xie et al, 2020 ). Apart from the substantial inhibition observed against S. aureus and S. agalactiae , biomaterials utilizing graphene quantum dots exhibited bactericidal properties against methicillin-resistant E. coli and P. aeruginosa ( D’Amora et al, 2023 ).…”