PROGRESS OF GALLIC ACID-DERIVED MICROCOMPOSITE GEL SYSTEMS FOR EFFECTIVE WOUND HEALING: A REVIEW

Management of chronic wounds continues to be a formidable clinical problem, demanding novel therapeutic strategies that target various stages of the healing cascade. Natural polyphenolic compounds such as gallic acid have been attracting interest as potential wound healing agents because of their multiple therapeutic activities. This review discusses in detail the preparation, characterization, application of gallic acid-loaded microcomposite gels, and their in vitro and in vivo studies, and focuses especially on chitosan-alginate matrix formulations. Incorporation of GA in biocompatible polymer matrices is a strategy to overcome GA's poor solubility in water and low bioavailability, in general. This review comprehensively summarizes the available understanding on formulation approaches, physicochemical characterization methods, release kinetics, and therapeutic potentials of gallic acid-based microcomposite systems. The study results indicate that ionotropic gelation approaches incorporating optimized polymer blends are able to develop stable colloidal forms with favourable particle size distribution, improved EE and controlled release patterns. The pseudoplastic rheology and the physiologically compatible pH ranges of these formulations result in enhanced patient compliance and therapy. Future directions of research therefore should involve comprehensive in vivo studies and real clinical validation of safety and efficacy that would be most welcomed for such new systems of drug delivery.