Incorporation of cellulosic degrading enzymes into bacterial cellulose for controlled degradation in wound care applications

Microbial cellulose has become a versatile biocompatible material useful for wound care and tissue engineering applications for years. Cellulose, however, cannot be degraded naturally in the human body as it does not contain the necessary cellulose degrading enzymes for hydrolysis. In this study, we demonstrate a bioabsorbable cellulose material which incorporates cellulose degrading enzymes in addition to antiseptic and pH balancing buffers useful for maintaining the activity of the enzymes. A double lyophilization process is implemented which both preserves the nanoscale structure of the material and the activity of the enzymes embedded in the material for long periods of time, allowing the material to be simply rehydrated before use. Citric acid-sodium citrate (CA-SC) and citric acid-sodium phosphate dibasic (CA-SPD) were used as pH balancing buffers and were integrated into the final material. Degradation of the material was examined in Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS) solution.