Defensin-conjugated polymer fabrics combat drug-resistant biofilms and toxins in skin wounds

Drug-resistant bacteria, bacterial biofilms and toxins impede skin wound healing. Traditional medical dressings, such as gauzes, serve merely as physical barriers and are insufficient to prevent bacterial adhesion and invasion. Herein, we present a composite nonwoven fabric dressing (PVA@HD5-myr) by covalently conjugating multi-bioactive human α defensin 5 derivative (HD5-myr) to polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). PVA@HD5-myr fibers are produced in one step by incorporating Tyzor®LA, a titanate coupling agent, into the spinning dope during the spinning process. The resulting PVA@HD5-myr demonstrates satisfactory antibacterial activity against multiple drug-resistant bacteria through adhesion and cell membrane disruption. Additionally, PVA@HD5-myr effectively inhibits biofilm formation on its surface, blocks bacterial invasion, and significantly promotes wound healing in vivo. This dressing also disrupts endotoxin release in skin wound environments, with favorable safety profiles both in vitro and in vivo assessments. Our findings suggest that PVA@HD5-myr is a promising candidate for next-generation clinical dressings, offering effective antimicrobial properties alongside wound protection. Medical dressings are typically not effective at preventing bacteria invasion, and act only as a physical barrier. Here, defensin-conjugated polymer fabrics are shown to be effective against antibacterial activity for various drug-resistant bacteria, by preventing cell adhesion and biofilm formation, while encouraging wound healing.