PCL/gelatin nanofibers incorporated with starfish polydeoxyribonucleotides for potential wound healing applications

Conventional wound dressings have several shortcomings because they are unspecific and partially effective for wound healing. To enhance the therapeutic efficiency of wound dressings, we extracted polydeoxyribonucleotides (PDRN) from Patiria pectinifera, and characterized using absorbance-based analysis, chemical composition analysis, and electrophoresis. We evaluated their cytotoxicity and wound healing activity on human dermal fibroblast (HDF) and human keratinocytes (HaCaT). Next, we used electrospinning to fabricate polycaprolactone (PCL)/gelatin (Gel)/PDRN nanofibers for wound dressing application. The average fiber diameters of PCL (P), PCL/Gel (PG), and PCL/Gel/PDRN (PGP) nanofibers were 582.88 ± 202.65, 435.65 ± 149.87, and 334.63 ± 98.09 nm, respectively. The biocompatibility of the nanofibers was assessed using MTT assay and FDA/PI staining on HDF and HaCaT, no cytotoxicity was observed. In vivo experiments with full-thickness skin defect mouse models confirmed that the PGP nanofiber accelerated the initial wound healing process, as shown by wound closure analysis and histological analysis. Our results suggest that the PGP nanofiber has potential as a biomaterial for wound dressing applications and skin tissue engineering.