When a burn injury occurs, the heat damage caused by said burn increases the permeability of the microvasculature. This increased permeability leads to the leakage of plasma into the interstitial spaces of cells, which can lead to hypovolemic shock. One approach to reduce the likelihood of hypovolemic shock is to reduce microvascular permeability. Oxidants serve as agonists that increase post-burn microvascular permeability through increasing the concentration of reactive oxygen species, ultimately leading to oxidative stress. Microvascular permeability remains in an elevated state so long as the rate of reactive oxygen species generation is greater than the body’s rate of detoxifying. One strategy to inhibit the effects of oxidative stress is to introduce antioxidants directly to the burn site. Current studies regarding burn wounds focus on the healing process after the initial injury. However, methods to stabilize the patient before significant plasma leakage occurs remain relatively unexplored.<br/><br/>This work focused on developing a burn wound patch with antioxidant properties towards the goal of reducing microvascular permeability. The chitosan films were prepared using an established drop casting method. Films were surface activated to increase the surface energy using an oxygen plasma (50 W, ~220 mTorr, 1 min 30 s). Following plasma activation films were submerged in various aromatic antioxidant solutions (e.g., aniline, carvacrol, cinnamaldehyde). Untreated and plasma-activated chitosan film wettability was analyzed using water contact angle goniometry, demonstrating enhanced surface energy following oxygen plasma treatment. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy was used to characterize surface functionality and provide information about the degree of antioxidant immobilization. Additionally, radical scavenging activity of antioxidant-immobilized chitosan materials was evaluated using a 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl assay. Overall, this work opens new directions for burn wound antioxidant therapy.

Toward a bioactive burn wound material: Surface treated chitosan films coated with three different aromatic compounds

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