A novel gentamicin-releasing wound dressing prepared from freshwater fish Cyprinus carpio collagen cross-linked with carbodiimide

Our study presents a novel collagen wound dressing prepared from freshwater fish skin (Cyprinus Carpio) collagen type I. Half of the sponges were cross-linked with carbodiimide. The cross-linked and non-cross-linked collagen sponges were subsequently impregnated with gentamicin and lyophilized thus allowing for the attainment of the appropriate gentamicin content without the removal thereof during the cross-linking stage. The structure was evaluated via micro-CT and infrared spectrometry and the structural stability and gentamicin release properties were evaluated in phosphate buffer solution. The sponges were further tested via a rat model of an infected wound with Pseudomonas aeruginosa inoculation and compared with a reference commercial product. The sponges thus prepared provided a degree of open porosity that was comparable to or higher than that of the reference commercial product. Spectrometry analysis revealed that the cross-linked collagen sponge and reference commercial product sponge preserved their secondary collagen structure after 168 h while early accelerated degradation was observed with respect to the non-cross-linked collagen sponge. Gentamicin was released rapidly from all the sponges. Compared to those animals with gentamicin-containing sponges or gentamicin administered intramuscularly, the animals with the cross-linked collagen sponge without gentamicin exhibited marked clinical and laboratory infection signs. Both the administration routes (intramuscular and via gentamicin-containing sponges) provided similar gentamicin plasma levels. The resulting highly homogeneous product which was characterized by excellent structural and clinical properties proved effective in terms of the treatment of a surgical wound infection in a rat model. We demonstrated that all the gentamicin was released from the sponge and was absorbed in the systemic circulation. This is the first time that Cyprinus Carpio collagen has been used in the preparation of wound dressings. Thus, gentamicin-containing sponges provide a promising tool for the treatment and prevention of surgical site infections.