To develop multifunctional hydrogels with excellent antibacterial properties and biocompatibility for the treatment of bacterial infection wounds, which can rapidly heal wounds and relieve pain.

A three-dimensional porous composite hydrogel was prepared by using methacrylated gelatin and polyacrylamide as raw materials and loading copper sulfide particles and ibuprofen through photo-crosslinking. The hydrogel has good biocompatibility and antibacterial properties. The morphology and structure of the hydrogel were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffractometer (XRD), etc. The swelling and degradation properties, mechanical properties and rheological properties of the drug-loaded PAAM/GelMA composite hydrogel were analyzed. Meanwhile, in vitro biological experiments were conducted to verify its excellent biocompatibility and explore its antibacterial properties.

The PG-CuS@Ib hydrogel displayed a high swelling performance (100%±5%), which can effectively absorb exudate. The antibacterial tests against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus showed that the inhibition rates were both over 99%. In the biocompatibility test, the survival rate of MC3T1-E1 cells was high, the cell morphology was spread out, and there was no obvious hemolysis (<5%).

The PG-CuS@Ib multifunctional composite hydrogel can meet the key requirements for wound healing. In general, the PG-CuS@Ib hydrogel has promising prospects as a wound dressing.