Boronic acid functionalized graphene platforms for diabetic wound healing

Graphene derivatives are two-dimensional platforms with a wide range of biomedical applications ranging from biosensors to tissue engineering1,2. To improve the antimicrobial activity of graphene derivatives, they should be equipped with functional groups that are able to attach to the membrane of pathogens strongly3. Due to the affinity of boronic acids towards cis-diol bearing biosystems4, graphene sheets with this functionality were synthesized (Fig.1) and their covalent interactions with the bacteria and nematode were investigated. As expected, graphene platforms with boronic acid functionality (G-BA) were able to wrap bacteria and destroy it in a short time. Surprisingly, the body of nematodes was ruptured by graphene sheets and their viability decreased to 30% after 24 h incubation time. Because of their strong antibacterial and antiparasitic activities as well as their ability for wound dressing, graphene platforms with the boronic acid functionality were further investigated for diabetic wound healing. In vivo experiments showed that graphene platforms are more efficient than the commercially available drug, phenytoin, and restore both infected and non-infected diabetic wounds in ten days. The results indicate boronic acid functionalized graphene sheets are promising candidates for a broad range of future biomedical applications.

کلیدواژه ها:

Graphene ، boronic acid ، diabetic wounds ، dopamine ، nematode ، bacteria