SYNTHESIS AND EVALUATION OF A NOVEL 2-DIMENTIONAL MAGNESIUM DIPHOSPHATE HYDROGEL DOPED WITH ZINC FOR TREATING MICROBIAL SKIN INFECTIONS

Abstract

The rise of antimicrobial resistance has created an urgent need for novel therapeutic strategies, particularly in infections associated with wound healing. This study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of a 2D magnesium (Mg) diphosphate-based nanosheet hydrogel doped with zinc (Zn) for its potential to enhance wound healing by preventing and treating microbial infections. The structural stability, antimicrobial efficacy, and biocompatibility of the hydrogels were evaluated using various analytical techniques, including Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX). Results demonstrated that Mg diphosphate hydrogels or Mg phosphate (MgP) hydrogels doped with 1% zinc (Zn) exhibited high stability. Antimicrobial assays revealed that both MgP hydrogel either undoped or Zn-doped hydrogels were highly effective against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), Escherichia coli (E. coli), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) and Candida albicans (C. albicans), with significant reductions in colony-forming units (CFUs) observed. Tissue culture cytotoxicity assessments using Alamar Blue assays indicated that the hydrogel is biocompatible at lower concentrations, though dose-dependent cytotoxicity was observed at higher concentrations. In conclusion, our synthesized hydrogel demonstrates significant potential as an infectious wound-healing material due to its combined antimicrobial and biocompatible properties. Future research should focus on optimizing the formulation for in vivo applications and scaling production.