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A series of hydrogels with a specific release profile of linezolid was successfully synthesized. The hydrogels were synthesized by cross-linking polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and aliphatic dicarboxylic acids, which include succinic acid (SA), glutaric acid (GA), and adipic acid (AA). The three crosslinked hydrogels were prepared by esterification and characterized by equilibrium swelling ratio, infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, mechanical properties, and scanning electron microscopy. The release kinetics studies of the linezolid from prepared hydrogels were investigated by cumulative drug release and quantified by chromatographic techniques. Mathematical models were carried out to understand the behavior of the linezolid release. These data revealed that the sustained release of linezolid depends on the aliphatic dicarboxylic acid chain length, their polarity, as well as the hydrogel crosslinking degree and mechanical properties. The in vitro antibacterial assay of hydrogel formulations was assessed in an Enterococcus faecium bacterial strain, showing a significant activity over time. The antibacterial results were consistent with cumulative release assays. Thus, these results demonstrated that the aliphatic dicarboxylic acids used as crosslinkers in the PVA hydrogels were a determining factor in the antibiotic release profile.

This research proposes the rational modeling, synthesis and evaluation of film dressing hydrogels based on polyvinyl alcohol crosslinked with 20 different kinds of dicarboxylic acids. These formulations would allow the sustained release of simultaneous bioactive compounds including allantoin, resveratrol, dexpanthenol and caffeic acid as a multi-target therapy in wound healing. Interaction energy calculations and molecular dynamics simulation studies allowed evaluating the intermolecular affinity of the above bioactive compounds by hydrogels crosslinked with the different dicarboxylic acids. According to the computational results, the hydrogels crosslinked with succinic, aspartic, maleic and malic acids were selected as the best candidates to be synthesized and evaluated experimentally. These four crosslinked hydrogels were prepared and characterized by FTIR, mechanical properties, SEM and equilibrium swelling ratio. The sustained release of the bioactive compounds from the film dressing was investigated in vitro and in vivo. The in vitro results indicate a good release profile for all four analyzed bioactive compounds. More importantly, in vivo experiments suggest that prepared formulations could considerably accelerate the healing rate of artificial wounds in rats. The histological studies show that these formulations help to successfully reconstruct and thicken epidermis during 14 days of wound healing. Moreover, the four film dressings developed and exhibited excellent biocompatibility. In conclusion, the novel film dressings based on hydrogels rationally designed with combinatorial and sustained release therapy could have significant promise as dressing materials for skin wound healing.