Foam-based antibacterial hydrogel composed of carboxymethyl cellulose/polyvinyl alcohol/cerium oxide nanoparticles for potential wound dressing

Foam-based wound dressing materials produced by dispersing gas phases in a polymeric material are soft, adapt to the body shape, and allow the absorption of wound exudate due to their porous structure. Most of these formulations are based on synthetic substances such as polyurethane. However, biopolymers have entered the field as a new player thanks to their biocompatible and sustainable nature. Incorporating biopolymers in formulations is gaining interest in scientific literature, and we extend this approach by adding antibacterial cerium oxide nanoparticles to biopolymer formulation. We introduce a novel biopolymer composite of carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), and cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeO₂ NPs), namely PVA-CMC@CeO₂. This mixture was first foamed and then cross-linked with sodium tetraborate solution, followed by a freeze-thaw process. After the novel material's spectroscopic, structural, and morphological characterization, we investigated its swelling, drug-delivery, antibacterial, and biodegradability properties PVA-CMC@CeO₂ dressing effectively inhibits Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) growth and delivers the antibiotic drug silver sulfadiazine for up to 6 h. The antibacterial properties, good swelling, and drug release profile of the blend material show promising potential in wound care applications.