Trehalose‐based hydrogel potentially useful for the skin burn treatment

The purpose of this work is the preparation of trehalose hydrogel for dermatological applications, particularly, for skin burn treatment. Trehalose is a disaccharide compound containing hydroxyl groups in its structure susceptible to derivatization. The obtained hydrogel was loaded once with hyaluronic acid, a fundamental component of connective tissue, and again with silver nitrate, an ingredient with antibacterial properties. The trehalose hydrogel was characterized by FTIR spectrometry and 1H‐NMR. The hydrogel swelling characteristics and release studies of entrapped hyaluronic acid or silver nitrate were evaluated at two pH values: pH 4.5 mimicking physiological conditions and pH 6.5 simulating the burned skin condition. The antioxidant activity of not loaded hydrogel in inhibiting the lipid peroxidation was performed in rat‐liver microsomal membranes, induced in vitro by tert‐butyl hydroperoxide (tert‐BOOH). The results confirm the possibility that the trehalose hydrogel can find use in the treatment of various skin lesions, particularly in burn therapy.