Zinc oxide nanoparticles accelerate the healing of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)-infected wounds in rabbits

Abstract

Objective: To synthesize zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) and evaluate their antibacterial and wound healing effects against wounds infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Methods: ZnONPs were prepared by sol-gel method and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). A total of 18 rabbits were divided into three groups: the ZnONPs group, the gentamicin group and the control group. A wound of 3 cm² was inflicted on each rabbit and contaminated with MRSA inoculum. Treatment was started from the fourth day post-surgery. Wound healing, microbiological analysis, and histopathological analysis were performed to assess the efficacy of ZnONPs ointment. Results: XRD analysis confirmed the hexagonal wurtzite structure of the ZnONPs with an average crystallite size of 29.23 nm. SEM revealed discoid-shaped ZnONPs with a rough surface and an average size of 48.36 nm. Energy-dispersive X-ray analysis confirmed the purity of ZnONPs. Moreover, the particle size ranged from 100-700 nm with a high agglomeration trend. Treatment with ZnONPs promoted MRSA-infected wound healing. In addition, ZnONPs showed a good antibacterial effect as evidenced by a dose-dependent increase in the zone of inhibition. Conclusions: ZnONPs accelerate the healing of MRSA-infected wounds. Therefore, it can be explored for the treatment of MRSA infection.

Keywords

MRSA / Wound healing / ZnO / Nanoparticles / Ointment

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Funding

The authors received no extramural funding for the study.

Data availability statement

The data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding authors upon request.

Authors’ contributions

MA, ASC and AA designed the work and contributed to the concept. MA, HBR, MHS, HBA and AA performed experiments and data validation. MA wrote original draft, and ASC and AA performed the critical revision of the manuscript. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

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