Bioactive bacterial nanocellulose membranes for non-surgical debridement and infection prevention in burn wound healing

Novel bioactive bacterial nanocellulose (BnC) membranes were developed for effective, non-surgical debridement and infection-prevention in burn wound healing. Membranes were modified in situ with carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) and ex situ with the proteolytic enzyme bromelain (Br) and antimicrobial peptide nisin (N). Post-processing into stable cellulose nanocrystal dispersions (ζ = -26 mV), enables assembly of model films for demonstration of high, irreversible bromelain (95 %) and nisin (99.5 %) adsorption. The BnC-CMC and BnC-CMC-N membranes were in vitro cytocompatible for HaCaT cells and induced faster cell proliferation with cell viability exceeding 100 % after 24 h incubation. The innovative aspect of this study lies in the ex vivo evaluation using an advanced human skin explant model with induced burns, providing a realistic, physiologically relevant assessment of membrane performance. Ex vivo experiments indicated the cytocompatibility of the BnC-CMC membrane with no acute toxicity or skin irritation, while nisin presence resulted in moderate irritating effect. Notably, the BnC-CMC-Br membrane showed digestion of intercellular junctions in the epidermis, while not inducing acute toxicity and skin irritation. By leveraging this innovative ex vivo human skin model in novel BnC-based membranes testing, the study provides a crucial translational step, bridging in vitro assessments and clinical applications for burn wound treatment.