This
study focuses on the synthesis of poly(ε-caprolactone)
diacrylate (PCLDA) for the fabrication of micelle-cross-linked sodium
AMPS wound dressing hydrogels. The novel synthetic approach of PCLDA
is functionalizing a PCL diol with acrylic acid. The influences of
varying the PCL diol/AA molar ratio and temperature on the suitable
conditions for the synthesis of PCLDA are discussed. The hydrogel
was synthesized through micellar copolymerization of sodium 2-acrylamido-2-methylpropane
sulfonate (Na-AMPS) as a basic monomer and PCLDA as a hydrophobic
association monomer. In this study, an attempt was made to develop
new hydrogel wound dressings meant for the release of antibacterial
drugs (ciprofloxacin and silver sulfadiazine). The chemical structures,
morphology, porosity, and water interaction of the hydrogels were
characterized. The hydrogels’ swelling ratio and water vapor
transmission rate (WVTR) showed a high swelling capacity (4688–10753%)
and good WVTR (approximately 2000 g·m–2·day–1), which can be controlled through variation of the
PCLDA concentration. The mechanical property results confirmed that
PCLDA improved the mechanical properties of the hydrogel; the stress
increased from 37 to 68 kPa, and the strain increased from 198 to
360% with increasing PCLDA (0–30% wt of Na-AMPS). These hydrogels
presented no cytotoxicity based on over 70% cell viability responses
(L929 fibroblasts) using an in vitro 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium
bromide (MTT) assay. Additionally, the drug release mechanism, kinetic
models, and antibacterial activity were determined. The results demonstrated
that antibiotics were released from the hydrogel with a Fickian diffusion
mechanism and antibacterial activity against Gram-negative bacteria
(Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and Gram-positive bacteria
(Staphylococcus aureus). Based on the
results obtained, and bearing in mind that further progress still
needs to be made, the fabricated hydrogels show considerable potential
for meeting the stringent property requirements of hydrogel wound
dressings.