"Disguise strategy" to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects

Kexin Li; En Xie; Chengyuan Liu; Jie Hu; Qianglong Chen; Jiaying Li; Huan Wang; Qingchen Meng; Dachuan Liu; Bin Meng; Ting Liang; Jinjin Ma; Zhangqin Yuan; Lijie Wang; Wenmiao Shu; Haijiao Mao; Fengxuan Han; Bin Li

doi:10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002

"Disguise strategy" to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects

Kexin Li, En Xie, Chengyuan Liu, Jie Hu, Qianglong Chen, Jiaying Li, Huan Wang, Qingchen Meng, Dachuan Liu, Bin Meng, Ting Liang, Jinjin Ma, Zhangqin Yuan, Lijie Wang, Wenmiao Shu, Haijiao Mao, Fengxuan Han^*, Bin Li^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Biomedical Engineering

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

Addressing the challenge of eliminating bacteria and stimulating osteogenesis in infectious bone defects, where cells and bacteria coexist within the microenvironment, presents a significant hurdle. In this study, a strategy of targeting bacteria is proposed to address this challenge. For this purpose, a methacrylated gelatin composite hydrogel containing zinc ion and D-type cysteine-modified polydopamine nanoparticles (PZC) is developed. The D-cysteine, involved in the metabolism of the bacterial peptidoglycan chain, allows PZC to specifically target bacteria, exhibiting a form of “disguise strategy”. Through the targeting effect, this composite hydrogel can selectively kill bacteria and promote osteogenesis combing photothermal therapy with Zn ²⁺ release, which showcases spatial controllability. Moreover, the antibacterial ability will be further improved after Near-infrared light irradiation. The multifunctional hydrogel containing Zn ²⁺ modified nanoparticles can also promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stem cells. Animal studies have revealed that the multifunctional hydrogel can inhibit bacteria growth and promote repair of infectious bone defects in rats. Findings from this study imply that endowing the nanoparticles with bacteria-targeting function can precisely control the events in cells and bacteria in the complex microenvironment, which can provide insights for the treatment of complex diseases with antibacterial requirements.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	343-360
Number of pages	18
Journal	Bioactive Materials
Volume	47
Early online date	12 Feb 2025
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002
Publication status	Published - May 2025

Funding

K.L. and E.X. contributed equally to this work. The authors are grateful for the funding provided for this study by the National Key R&D Program of China (2023YFB3810200, 2023YFB3810201), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81925027, 32171350, 32471410), International Cooperation Project of Ningbo City (2023H013), Jiangsu Basic Research Program (Natural Science Foundation) (BK20240020), Medical and Health Science and Technology Innovation Project of Suzhou (SKY2022105), Jiangsu Province Science and Technology Plan Special Fund (BE2022730), Postdoctoral Fellowship Program of CPSF (BX20230253, GZB20230505), Basic cutting-edge innovation cross project of Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University (YXY2302010, YXY2304046, YXY2304053), the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation under Grant Number 2023TQ0235, Science and Technology Development Project of Suzhou (SGC202379, SZS2023043) and the Priority Academic Program Development (PAPD) of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions.

Keywords

Bacteria-targeting
Antibacterial effect
Bone regeneration
Spatially controllable hydrogel
Infectious bone defect

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002Licence: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Li-etal-2025-A-multifunctional-hydrogel-with-bacteria-targeting-and-photothermal-conversion-properties-for-the-repair-of-infectious-bone-defectsFinal published version, 22.6 MBLicence: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Cite this

Li, K., Xie, E., Liu, C., Hu, J., Chen, Q., Li, J., Wang, H., Meng, Q., Liu, D., Meng, B., Liang, T., Ma, J., Yuan, Z., Wang, L., Shu, W., Mao, H., Han, F., & Li, B. (2025). "Disguise strategy" to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects. Bioactive Materials, 47, 343-360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002

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title = "{"}Disguise strategy{"} to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects",

abstract = "Addressing the challenge of eliminating bacteria and stimulating osteogenesis in infectious bone defects, where cells and bacteria coexist within the microenvironment, presents a significant hurdle. In this study, a strategy of targeting bacteria is proposed to address this challenge. For this purpose, a methacrylated gelatin composite hydrogel containing zinc ion and D-type cysteine-modified polydopamine nanoparticles (PZC) is developed. The D-cysteine, involved in the metabolism of the bacterial peptidoglycan chain, allows PZC to specifically target bacteria, exhibiting a form of “disguise strategy”. Through the targeting effect, this composite hydrogel can selectively kill bacteria and promote osteogenesis combing photothermal therapy with Zn 2+ release, which showcases spatial controllability. Moreover, the antibacterial ability will be further improved after Near-infrared light irradiation. The multifunctional hydrogel containing Zn 2+ modified nanoparticles can also promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stem cells. Animal studies have revealed that the multifunctional hydrogel can inhibit bacteria growth and promote repair of infectious bone defects in rats. Findings from this study imply that endowing the nanoparticles with bacteria-targeting function can precisely control the events in cells and bacteria in the complex microenvironment, which can provide insights for the treatment of complex diseases with antibacterial requirements.",

keywords = "Bacteria-targeting, Antibacterial effect, Bone regeneration, Spatially controllable hydrogel, Infectious bone defect",

author = "Kexin Li and En Xie and Chengyuan Liu and Jie Hu and Qianglong Chen and Jiaying Li and Huan Wang and Qingchen Meng and Dachuan Liu and Bin Meng and Ting Liang and Jinjin Ma and Zhangqin Yuan and Lijie Wang and Wenmiao Shu and Haijiao Mao and Fengxuan Han and Bin Li",

year = "2025",

month = may,

doi = "10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002",

language = "English",

volume = "47",

pages = "343--360",

journal = "Bioactive Materials",

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Li, K, Xie, E, Liu, C, Hu, J, Chen, Q, Li, J, Wang, H, Meng, Q, Liu, D, Meng, B, Liang, T, Ma, J, Yuan, Z, Wang, L, Shu, W, Mao, H, Han, F & Li, B 2025, '"Disguise strategy" to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects', Bioactive Materials, vol. 47, pp. 343-360. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002

TY - JOUR

T1 - "Disguise strategy" to bacteria

T2 - A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects

AU - Li, Kexin

AU - Xie, En

AU - Liu, Chengyuan

AU - Hu, Jie

AU - Chen, Qianglong

AU - Li, Jiaying

AU - Wang, Huan

AU - Meng, Qingchen

AU - Liu, Dachuan

AU - Meng, Bin

AU - Liang, Ting

AU - Ma, Jinjin

AU - Yuan, Zhangqin

AU - Wang, Lijie

AU - Shu, Wenmiao

AU - Mao, Haijiao

AU - Han, Fengxuan

AU - Li, Bin

PY - 2025/5

Y1 - 2025/5

N2 - Addressing the challenge of eliminating bacteria and stimulating osteogenesis in infectious bone defects, where cells and bacteria coexist within the microenvironment, presents a significant hurdle. In this study, a strategy of targeting bacteria is proposed to address this challenge. For this purpose, a methacrylated gelatin composite hydrogel containing zinc ion and D-type cysteine-modified polydopamine nanoparticles (PZC) is developed. The D-cysteine, involved in the metabolism of the bacterial peptidoglycan chain, allows PZC to specifically target bacteria, exhibiting a form of “disguise strategy”. Through the targeting effect, this composite hydrogel can selectively kill bacteria and promote osteogenesis combing photothermal therapy with Zn 2+ release, which showcases spatial controllability. Moreover, the antibacterial ability will be further improved after Near-infrared light irradiation. The multifunctional hydrogel containing Zn 2+ modified nanoparticles can also promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stem cells. Animal studies have revealed that the multifunctional hydrogel can inhibit bacteria growth and promote repair of infectious bone defects in rats. Findings from this study imply that endowing the nanoparticles with bacteria-targeting function can precisely control the events in cells and bacteria in the complex microenvironment, which can provide insights for the treatment of complex diseases with antibacterial requirements.

AB - Addressing the challenge of eliminating bacteria and stimulating osteogenesis in infectious bone defects, where cells and bacteria coexist within the microenvironment, presents a significant hurdle. In this study, a strategy of targeting bacteria is proposed to address this challenge. For this purpose, a methacrylated gelatin composite hydrogel containing zinc ion and D-type cysteine-modified polydopamine nanoparticles (PZC) is developed. The D-cysteine, involved in the metabolism of the bacterial peptidoglycan chain, allows PZC to specifically target bacteria, exhibiting a form of “disguise strategy”. Through the targeting effect, this composite hydrogel can selectively kill bacteria and promote osteogenesis combing photothermal therapy with Zn 2+ release, which showcases spatial controllability. Moreover, the antibacterial ability will be further improved after Near-infrared light irradiation. The multifunctional hydrogel containing Zn 2+ modified nanoparticles can also promote osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow stem cells. Animal studies have revealed that the multifunctional hydrogel can inhibit bacteria growth and promote repair of infectious bone defects in rats. Findings from this study imply that endowing the nanoparticles with bacteria-targeting function can precisely control the events in cells and bacteria in the complex microenvironment, which can provide insights for the treatment of complex diseases with antibacterial requirements.

KW - Bacteria-targeting

KW - Antibacterial effect

KW - Bone regeneration

KW - Spatially controllable hydrogel

KW - Infectious bone defect

U2 - 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002

DO - 10.1016/j.bioactmat.2025.02.002

M3 - Article

C2 - 40026823

SN - 2452-199X

VL - 47

SP - 343

EP - 360

JO - Bioactive Materials

JF - Bioactive Materials

ER -

"Disguise strategy" to bacteria: A multifunctional hydrogel with bacteria-targeting and photothermal conversion properties for the repair of infectious bone defects

Abstract

Funding

Keywords

UN SDGs

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