Development and In Vitro Characterization of Light Responsive Zinc-Based Nanoparticles Embedded in Collagen Sheets Intended for Wound Care Oriented Applications

Bacterial infections are one of the most critical issues in hard-to-heal wounds that delay healing. The use of dressings able to both stimulate tissue regeneration and limit bacterial proliferation would reduce post-operative therapies and hospitalization costs. To this, antibacterial wound dressings have been developed. Among antibacterial agents, Zinc and Silver-based nanoparticles (NPs) are the most commonly used for their well-known safety profile. Among biomaterials, collagen is recognized as the gold standard for wound dressing manufacturing because of its unique pro-regenerative properties. With the aim of improving current wound dressings efficacy, a collagen-based device with light-responsive antibacterial properties was developed and in vitro characterized. A fibrillar type I collagen from horse tendon doped with patented Zinc-based NPs was employed for the manufacturing of thin sheets. After the analysis of the chemical-physical properties of collagen-based sheets, the preliminary evaluation of their antibacterial efficacy confirmed their effectiveness and light-responsiveness. The developed innovation would make it possible to in situ control the bacterial population and to reduce healing times and related costs.