Issue 27, 2024

A hydrogel based on Fe(ii)-GMP demonstrates tunable emission, self-healing mechanical strength and Fenton chemistry-mediated notable antibacterial properties

Abstract

Supramolecular hydrogels serve as an excellent platform to enable in situ reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation while maintaining controlled localized conditions, thereby mitigating cytotoxicity. Herein, we demonstrate hydrogel formation using guanosine-5′-monophosphate (GMP) with tetra(4-carboxylphenyl) ethylene (1) to exhibit aggregation-induced emission (AIE) and tunable mechanical strength in the presence of divalent metal ions such as Ca2+, Mg2+, and Fe2+. The addition of divalent metal ions leads to structural transformation in the metallogels (M-1GMP). Furthermore, the incorporation of Fe2+ ions into the hydrogel (Fe-1GMP) promotes the Fenton reaction that could be upregulated upon adding ascorbic acid (AA), demonstrating antibacterial efficacy via ROS generation. In vitro studies on AA-loaded Fe-1GMP demonstrate excellent bacterial killing efficacy against E. coli, S. aureus and vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) strains. Finally, in vivo studies involving topical administration of Fe-1GMP to Balb/c mice with skin infections further suggest the potential antibacterial efficacy of the hydrogel. Taken together, the hydrogel with its unique combination of mechanical tunability, ROS generation capability and antibacterial efficacy can be used for biomedical applications, particularly in wound healing and infection control.

Graphical abstract: A hydrogel based on Fe(ii)-GMP demonstrates tunable emission, self-healing mechanical strength and Fenton chemistry-mediated notable antibacterial properties

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
10 मार्च 2024
Accepted
06 जून 2024
First published
06 जून 2024

Nanoscale, 2024,16, 13050-13060

A hydrogel based on Fe(II)-GMP demonstrates tunable emission, self-healing mechanical strength and Fenton chemistry-mediated notable antibacterial properties

Umesh, V. C. Chandran, P. Saha, D. Nath, S. Bera, S. Bhattacharya and A. Pal, Nanoscale, 2024, 16, 13050 DOI: 10.1039/D4NR01011F

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements