Xylan-chitosan based films with deep eutectic solvents for wound healing applications

Wound care is a critical issue for healthcare systems, which translates into an increased demand for innovative wound dressings that can expedite the healing process while ensuring patient comfort and safety. In this context, the development of sustainable biopolymeric materials for wound care applications has gained considerable interest. In this study, functional biopolymeric films, composed of xylans, chitosan, and a deep eutectic solvent (DES), were prepared by solvent casting. The DES was simultaneously used as the solubilization medium for the biopolymers and as plasticizer and compatibilizer of xylans and chitosan. The film with the best composition (50:50 w/w ratio of xylan:chitosan) presented good homogeneity, thermal stability up to 150 °C, adequate mechanical properties (tensile strength up to 8.2 MPa and elongation at break up to 110 %), non-cytotoxicity towards human keratinocytes (HaCaT cell line, cell viability ≥80 %), UV-light protection (transmittance ≤38 %, 200-400 nm), and good antibacterial activity against a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) strain (≥ 4-log CFU·mL-1 reduction, in vitro assay; 2-log CFU·mL-1 reduction, ex vivo assay). Finally, in vitro wound healing 2D scratch assays showed 76 % wound area closure after 30 h, and 17 % of relative cell viability in the simulated wound area after 72 h achieved with a 3D hydrogel model.