Electrospun photothermal tellurium nanosheet-loaded polycaprolactone/gelatin nanofibers to promote wound healing

Low-cost and biodegradable photothermal wound dressings with remarkable therapeutic effects are highly desirable for next-generation wound healing. Herein, we report an efficient photothermal wound dressing mat made of tellurium nanosheet (TeNS)-loaded electrospun polycaprolactone/gelatin (PCL/GEL) nanofibers. The TeNS-loaded PCL/GEL nanofibrous architectures showed antibacterial efficacy against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus of 87.68% and 94.57%, respectively. Under near-infrared (NIR) light illumination, they can facilitate cell proliferation as revealed by in vitro scratch assay. The results from in vivo skin wounds combined with tissue staining experiments further showed that the TeNS-loaded dressing could substantially promote wound healing under photothermal conditions. Using immunohistochemical analysis, we found that the TeNS-loaded PCL/GEL nanofibers + NIR group have a high expression of specific antigens in epidermal growth factor (EGF) (P < 0.01) and endothelial cell adhesion molecule-31 (CD31, P < 0.05), verifying that the nanofibrous mat can stimulate EGF generation and microvessel proliferation. Furthermore, the PCL/GEL/Te+NIR group has the lowest expression in endothelial cell adhesion molecule-68 (CD68, P < 0.01), suggesting that the nanofibrous mats have a high anti-inflammatory efficiency. Our work sheds light on the development of novel nonanti-inflammatory wound dressings via photothermal sterilization and the promotion of cell growth using two-dimensional (2D) nanosheets.