Sodium pentaborate pentahydrate and pluronic containing hydrogel increases cutaneous wound healing in vitro and in vivo

Abstract

After a disruption of skin integrity, the body produces an immediate response followed by a functional and comparable regeneration period, referred to as wound healing. Although normal wounds do not need much attention during the healing period, chronic (non-healing) wounds are the major challenge of current dermatological applications. Therefore, developing new, safe, and effective wound healing drugs has always been an attractive area of international research. In the current study, sodium pentaborate pentahydrate (NaB), pluronics (Plu; F68 and F127), and their combinations were investigated for their wound healing activities, using in vitro and in vivo approaches. The results revealed that NaB significantly increased migration capacity and superoxide dismutase activity in primary human fibroblasts. Combinations of optimized concentrations for pluronic block co-polymers further increased cell migration, and the messenger RNA (mRNA) expression levels of important growth factor and cytokines (vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), transforming growth factor beta (TGF-ß), and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-?)). NaB containing hydrogel co-formulated with pluronics was also investigated for their wound healing activities using a full thickness wound model in rats. Macroscopic and histopathological analysis confirmed that wounds in combination gel-treated groups healed faster than those of control groups. NaB/Plu gel application was found to increase wound contraction and collagen deposition in the wound area. Therefore, our results suggest that NaB, and its pluronics combination, could be used in dermatological clinics and be a future solution for chronic wounds. However, further studies should be conducted to explore its exact action of mechanism and effects of this formulation on chronic wounds.