Scaffold Secret: A New Weapon Against Infected Wounds

Infected wounds often struggle to heal due to bacterial invasion and inflammation. To tackle this, scientists created a unique scaffold using hyaluronan and modified gelatin. This scaffold, called HAG-g-C, was designed to mimic a protein-rich environment and was decorated with a natural antimicrobial peptide called cathelicidin-BF (CBF). In lab tests, HAG-g-C showed impressive antibacterial action against common culprits like Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. It also had a clever trick up its sleeve—it could change the behavior of immune cells called macrophages from an inflammatory state (M1) to a healing state (M2). This switch helps speed up tissue repair. In experiments with mice having Staphylococcus aureus-infected skin wounds, HAG-g-C quickly stopped the infection in its tracks. On the twelfth day, it rerouted the M1 macrophages to the M2 phenotype. Additionally, it boosted collagen production and lowered inflammation markers like TNF-α, which significantly sped up wound recovery.