Advances in preparation and application of antibacterial hydrogels

Abstract

Bacterial infections, especially those caused by drug-resistant bacteria, have seriously threatened human life and health. There is urgent to develop new antibacterial agents to reduce the problem of antibiotics. Biomedical materials with good antimicrobial properties have been widely used in antibacterial applications. Among them, hydrogels have become the focus of research in the field of biomedical materials due to their unique three-dimensional network structure, high hydrophilicity, and good biocompatibility. In this review, the latest research progresses about hydrogels in recent years were summarized, mainly including the preparation methods of hydrogels and their antibacterial applications. According to their different antibacterial mechanisms, several representative antibacterial hydrogels were introduced, such as antibiotics loaded hydrogels, antibiotic-free hydrogels including metal-based hydrogels, antibacterial peptide and antibacterial polymers, stimuli-responsive smart hydrogels, and light-mediated hydrogels. In addition, we also discussed the applications and challenges of antibacterial hydrogels in biomedicine, which are expected to provide new directions and ideas for the application of hydrogels in clinical antibacterial therapy.

Keywords: Antibacterial hydrogels; Antibacterial properties; Biomedical application; Chemical cross-linking; Drug delivery systems; Infection treatment; Light-mediated hydrogels.

Fig. 1

The different antibacterial agents incorporated into hydrogels

Fig. 2

Formation process of double network hydrogel. Reproduced with permission [56]. Copyright 2013 Elsevier Ltd

Fig. 3

a Schematic synthesis of graphene/silk cellulose composite hydrogel loaded with Ciprofloxacin (CIP) and its application in wound healing. Reproduced with permission [66]. Copyright 2021, Springer Nature. b Schematic diagram of the synthesis of hydrogel films loaded with gentamicin. Reproduced with permission [77]. Copyright 2021 Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. c Schematic diagram of the CMP-Van-Lipo loaded co-gels structure and antibacterial activity. Reproduced with permission [84]. Copyright 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd

Fig. 4

Antibacterial hydrogels incorporated with metal nanoparticles. a Preparation process of cellulose composite hydrogel and its characterization and application in sensors. Reproduced with permission [96]. Copyright 2021 Elsevier Ltd. b Schematic diagram of antibacterial activity of HA-Cu hydrogel and antibacterial activity of HA-Cu hydrogels with different Cu²⁺ contents. Reproduced with permission [102]. Copyright 2022 American Chemical Society c Application of nanocomposite hydrogels containing CuO nanoparticles in wound healing. Reproduced with permission [112]. Copyright 2021 Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland

Fig. 5

Antibacterial hydrogel incorporating antimicrobial peptides. a Hydrogel coating embedded with antibacterial peptides. Reproduced with permission [159]. Copyright 2021 American Chemical Society. b Schematic diagram of the synthesis of a hydrogel dressing that can be used for diabetic wound healing. Reproduced with permission [161]. Copyright 2021 Elsevier Ltd. c Schematic diagram of the preparation of self-fusing supramolecular hydrogels and their applications. Reproduced with permission [162]. Copyright 2022 IOP Publishing

Fig. 6

Photothermal antibacterial hydrogels. a Preparation process of E/SMM-PNAGA-Au@PDA NRs hydrogel and its application in wound healing. Reproduced with permission [191]. Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V. b Synthesis strategy of HA-DA/rGO hydrogel, shape, and healing under mechanical force and schematic diagram of its application in wound healing. Reproduced with permission [193]. Copyright 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. c Schematic diagram of the preparation process of hydrogel and its application in promoting wound healing. Reproduced with permission [195]. Copyright 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. d Structure of Me-PANI NPs@PAM hydrogels and their application in wound infection. Reproduced with permission [197]. Copyright 2021 Wiley–VCH GmbH

Fig. 7

Photodynamic and photothermal synergistic antibacterial hydrogels. a Synthesis process of MoOx@MB-hy hydrogel. b Schematic diagram of PTT-PDT synergistic antibacterial effect. Reproduced with permission [207]. Copyright 2022 The Royal Society of Chemistry