International journal of biological macromoleculesNov 12, 2025

Light-Activated Chitosan Gel with PCN-224 and Berberine for Treating Antibiotic-Resistant Infected Wounds

Regenerative Health Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Jan 7, 2026

Abstract

The hydrogel platform LAMC@PCN-224@BBR eradicated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli with an efficiency exceeding 99%.

The hydrogel combines photodynamic therapy with enhanced tissue adhesion for improved wound healing.
Light irradiation of the hydrogel generates reactive oxygen species, which are effective against multidrug-resistant bacteria.
In a skin defect model, the hydrogel accelerated healing by reducing inflammation and promoting collagen formation.
The treatment enhances blood vessel formation and encourages macrophages to adopt a healing-promoting state.
The hydrogel shows excellent biocompatibility, enabling it to conform to irregular wound surfaces.

Simplified

Infections caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria significantly hinder wound healing, highlighting the need for non-antibiotic alternatives. Here, we developed a multifunctional hydrogel platform, LAMC@PCN-224@BBR, by incorporating photodynamic PCN-224 and the natural product berberine (BBR) into lipoic acid-modified chitosan (LAMC). This design combines photo-crosslinking for enhanced tissue adhesion with photodynamic therapy (PDT) for antimicrobial activity. Upon light irradiation, the hydrogel generates reactive oxygen species (ROS), effectively eradicating methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and Escherichia coli (E. coli) with an efficiency exceeding 99 %. Its excellent biocompatibility and adaptive adhesion allow conformal coverage of irregular wounds. In a full-thickness skin defect model, the hydrogel accelerated healing by suppressing inflammation, promoting collagen deposition, enhancing angiogenesis, and polarizing macrophages toward the pro-regenerative M2 phenotype. These findings demonstrate that the LAMC@PCN-224@BBR hydrogel is a promising clinical strategy for controlling resistant infections and promoting tissue regeneration.

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Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

PubMed

Light-Activated Chitosan Gel with PCN-224 and Berberine for Treating Antibiotic-Resistant Infected Wounds

Abstract

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Competing interests

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