Nano-encapsulation of curcumin in fish collagen grafted succinyl chitosan hydrogel accelerates wound healing process in experimental rats

Succinyl chitosan-fish collagen composite hydrogel containing nano-encapsulated curcumin was developed for wound healing application. Curcumin was encapsulated in succinyl chitosan nano-particles using ionic gelation technique. The Z-average diameter of the nanoparticles as observed by dynamic light scattering experiment was ∼47 nm. Similar size ranges were observed in atomic force microscope (AFM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) images. A simple one pot gelation of the composite hydrogel containing nano-encapsulated curcumin was achieved by crosslinking succinyl chitosan and fish collagen with caffeic acid. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images of the crosslinked hydrogel showed porous sheet like/spongy morphology typical to crosslinked hydrogels. The developed hydrogel was evaluated for its wound healing efficacy in subcutaneous wound model on Wistar albino rats. The hydrogel significantly enhanced the collagen deposition and hydroxyproline content of 599.4 μg/gm and 74.9 μg/gm in wound tissue on the 14th day of post wounding.