Bioactive composite Janus nanofibrous membranes loading Ciprofloxacin and Astaxanthin for enhanced healing of full-thickness skin defect wounds

Treatment of full-thickness skin defect wound is a significant clinical challenge due to infection and hindrance of wound healing caused by excessive exudates around wounds. For the management and utilization of exudates, a skin-inspired multilayer Janus composite nanofibrous membrane with superhydrophilicity and superhydrophobicity as a wound dressing is designed. The composite membrane includes the drug-loading layer with superhydrophilic surface for self-pumping and drugs backflow, the hydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride layer for delaying the exudates loss, and the superhydrophobic coating with self-cleaning properties for avoiding adhesion of foreign microorganisms. The drug-loading layer not only allows exudates transport from wound bed to the dressing and lock exudates in the nanofiber network to avoid dehydration of the wound, but also enables backflow of the drugs loaded on nanofibers to the wound site to inhibit bacterial growth and stimulate tissue regeneration. The animal experiment and histological analysis confirm the function of composite dressing in accelerating healing of the full-thickness defect wound and the growth of collagen fibers and collagen deposition than the control group. These results demonstrate that the skin-inspired superhydrophilic/superhydrophobic Janus nanofibrous membrane is a promising wound dressing for promoting full-thickness skin defect wound healing, displaying its great potential applications in skin tissue engineering.