Highly hydrophilic and dispersed TiO2 nano-system with enhanced photocatalytic antibacterial activities and accelerated tissue regeneration under visible light

Abstract Titanium dioxide (TiO2)-based photodynamic antibacterial (PDA) agents present a novel approach for addressing drug-resistant bacterial infections and the associated tissue damage. However, the suboptimal dispersibility, negative charge, and weak photocatalytic activity under visible light of TiO2 hinder its practical applications. This study aimed to address these limitations by developing a highly hydrophilic and dispersed Zn-TiO2/reduced graphene oxide (rGO) (HTGZ) nano-system with exceptional visible light catalytic activity and tissue repair ability. HTGZ produced an antibacterial ratio over 98% within a short time, likely due to the enhanced production of reactive oxygen species under visible light. After being co-cultured for 4 days, L929 cells and BMSCs maintained over 90% activity, indicating that HTGZ had no significant cytotoxicity. Furthermore, the transcriptomic and metabolic analyses revealed that the antibacterial mechanism mainly came from the destruction of cell membranes and the disruption of various metabolic processes, such as purine metabolism and fatty acid biosynthesis. Critically, results of in vivo experiments had authenticated that HTGZ significantly promoted infected tissue regeneration by slaughtering bacteria and release Zn2+. After 14 days, the wound area was only one-third that of the control group. Overall, the enhanced antibacterial efficacy and wound-healing potential position HTGZ as a promising nano-antibacterial medication for the clinical treatment of infectious bacterial diseases.