# Antibacterial Creams Containing Cationic Carbosilane Dendrimers for Wound Treatment

## TL;DR

This paper explores the use of cationic carbosilane dendrimers in antibacterial creams for treating skin wounds and preventing bacterial infections.

## Contribution

The study introduces cationic carbosilane dendrimers as a novel alternative to traditional antibacterial treatments for wound care.

## Key findings

- Cationic carbosilane dendrimers with specific structural modifications showed bactericidal activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.
- The position of alkyl chains and the presence of PEG or sulfone units influenced the antibacterial effectiveness of the dendrimers.
- The cream formulation's antibacterial properties varied depending on the dendrimer structure and release characteristics.

## Abstract

Skin wounds are an
important factor in developing bacterial infection,
especially for chronic wounds. In this case, the exposure to long
traditional antibacterial-based treatments can lead to the appearance
of resistance to these drugs. This situation makes the search for
alternatives to attack these infections essential, as it is the use
of cationic multivalent systems. Here, we discussed the antibacterial
and biological properties of different cationic carbosilane (CBS)
dendrimers against () and () as models
of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, respectively. Dendrimers
are a type of multivalent molecule with a well-defined structure.
The CBS dendrimers used in this work differ in several modifications
that affect the hydrophobic/hydrophilic balance, which is very relevant
to achieve bactericidal activity. These structural changes are the
position of a short alkyl chain, in the internal dendritic structure
or on the outer ammonium groups, the presence of a polyethylene glycol
(PEG) chain instead of a cationic function, or in the vicinal moieties
of the cationic functions, sulfur atoms or sulfone units. The studies
allowed the selection of some dendrimers, all of them with the inner
long chain and trimethylammonium (−NMe3
+) groups, as active ingredients of a topical cream (water in oil,
W/O). The antibacterial and biological properties of the creams were
also tested against bacteria
because it is the most common pathogen involved in skin infections.
We observed different abilities of the dendrimers to be released from
the cream, depending on the dendrimer structure, and as a consequence,
different antibacterial properties of the creams. Finally, an analysis
of the physicochemical properties of the best formulation was also
done.