Local Skin Delivery of Anti-Infective and Regenerative Actives for Wound Healing

Wound healing is a highly dynamic and complex biological process involving multiple overlapping phases, including inflammation, proliferation, and tissue remodeling. Disruptions in these processes, often associated with microbial infections, chronic inflammation, or metabolic disorders, can lead to delayed or non-healing wounds, representing a major clinical and socioeconomic burden worldwide.

Recent advances in drug delivery technologies and biomaterials science have enabled the development of sophisticated platforms such as hydrogels, nanoparticles, electrospun nanofibers, and bioengineered scaffolds for localized therapy. Increasing attention is now being directed toward multifunctional systems that combine antimicrobial and regenerative properties within a single delivery system, including stimuli-responsive materials capable of adapting to the wound microenvironment. Despite these advances, significant challenges remain in optimizing delivery efficiency, targeting specific wound environments, and translating these approaches into clinical practice.

Chronic and acute wounds remain a major global healthcare challenge, often complicated by infections, impaired tissue regeneration, and prolonged healing times. Current therapeutic strategies frequently address either infection control or tissue repair, but rarely both in an integrated and effective manner.

This Research Topic aims to explore innovative and next-generation approaches for the local delivery of anti-infective and regenerative actives to enhance wound healing outcomes. Particular emphasis will be placed on advanced biomaterials and drug delivery platforms, including hydrogels, electrospun nanofibers, bioengineered scaffolds, nanoparticles, and smart responsive systems, capable of simultaneously preventing infection and promoting tissue regeneration.

This Research Topic seeks to provide a multidisciplinary platform bridging fundamental research and clinical translation, fostering the development of more effective and personalized therapeutic solutions for wound care. We welcomes original research articles and reviews focusing on innovative strategies for local skin delivery in wound healing. We particularly encourage contributions addressing, but not limited to:

• Advanced biomaterials and drug delivery systems (e.g., hydrogels, electrospun nanofibers, microneedles, bioengineered scaffolds, nanoparticles).

• Smart and stimuli-responsive biomaterials (e.g., pH-, temperature-, or ROS-responsive systems).

• Antimicrobial agents, including antibiotics, antimicrobial peptides, and natural compounds.

• Regenerative approaches involving growth factors, stem cells, and bioactive molecules.

• Controlled and targeted release systems.

• Combination therapies integrating anti-infective and regenerative strategies.

• Preclinical and clinical studies focusing on drug delivery systems for acute and chronic wounds.

Contributions adopting multidisciplinary and translational perspectives are particularly encouraged.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Brief Research Report
• Case Report
• Clinical Trial
• Community Case Study
• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• General Commentary
• Hypothesis and Theory
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Policy and Practice Reviews
• Policy Brief
• Review
• Study Protocol
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: Wound healing, Skin drug delivery, Advanced drug delivery systems, Biomaterials, Antimicrobial therapy, Regenerative medicine, Nanoparticles Hydrogels

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.