Antimicrobial Peptide Nanoparticle-Based Microneedle Patches for the Treatment of Bacteria-Infected Wounds

To avoid the production of drug resistance during the antibiotic treatment of wound infection, the use of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) has been strongly developed. However, its application is limited by low bioavailability, rapid degradation of AMP, and the difficulty of deep-tissue bacterial elimination. To solve this problem, AMP and recombinant type III humanized collagen (Col III)-contained microneedle patches were designed to achieve slow and controlled release of AMP and Col III to effectively eliminate the bacteria in the deep wound tissue and promote wound healing. AMP (KKLRLKIAFK) coupled with Cy3 was encapsulated in the nanogel (CGA-NPs), which was formed by chitosan (CS) and gum arabic (GA) through electrostatic interactions. Microneedle (MN) patches were dissolved after penetrating the infected skin and biofilm formed by Staphylococcus aureus to release CGA-NPs. AMPs was released responding to the infected microenvironment to efficiently kill bacteria, and Col III was beneficial to promote wound healing. This is a strategy for the design and application of a microneedle-based antimicrobial drug delivery system.