In vitro evaluation for antibacterial and anti-inflammatory effects of sodium alginate hydrogel

Identifying appropriate materials for drug delivery and antibacterial to prevent wound infection is an important mission. Hydrogel is widely considered as a promising carrier to encapsulate drug and promote wound healing owing to the good biocompatibility. However, combining drug with antibacterial agent in a synergistic treatment effect still needs further research. Herein, this article reported an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory hydrogel based on titanium dioxide (TiO₂) and ibuprofen (IBU) encapsulated in sodium alginate (SA) hydrogels. Formation of hydrogel was dependent on cross-linking SA molecular chain with divalent calcium ion which came from calcium carbonate (CaCO₃). The hydrogel displayed ideal antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus under sunlight conditions due to the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). The anti-inflammatory drug IBU in hydrogel displayed the sustained release and the addition of TiO₂ cannot affect the drug release behavior. The IBU release mechanism was investigated by drug release kinetics. The addition of TiO₂ can improve the mechanical properties of SA hydrogel. The TiO₂/SA hydrogel is stable, which can protect the drug activity and maintain the long-term release of drugs. This work developed a potential antibacterial and anti-inflammatory material for medical applications.