Preparation and characterization of thermosensitive artificial skin with a Sandwich structure

A thermosensitive artificial skin composed of gelatin-chitosan (Gel-CS) scaffold as dermis and poly(N-isopropyl acrylamide) (PNIPAAm) grafted microporous polyurethane (PU) membrane as epidermis bound together by gelatin was prepared, and its morphological structure, water vapor permeability rate (WVPR) and in vivo biological properties were investigated. The results showed that the as-prepared artificial skin showed a “Sandwich” structure and its WVPR was 804 g/m2 day, close to those from commercial skin dressings (426-2047 g/m2 day). The in vivo tests indicated that the “Sandwich” artificial skin could effectively accelerate wound closure in a rat model with full-thickness skin loss and the epidermis could easily peel off after wound healing.