Abstract
The growth of population and increase in diseases that cause an enormous demand for biomedical material consumption is a pointer to the pressing need to develop new sustainable biomaterials. Electrospun materials derived from green polymers have gained popularity in recent years for biomedical applications such as tissue engineering, wound dressings, and drug delivery. Among the various bioengineering materials used in the synthesis of a biodegradable polymer, poly(lactic acid) (PLA) has received the most attention from researchers. Hypericum perforatum oil (HPO) has antimicrobial activity against a variety of bacteria. This study aimed to investigate the development of an antibacterial sustainable material based on PLA by incorporating HPO via a simple, low-cost electrospinning method. Chemical, morphological, thermal, thickness and, air permeability properties, and in vitro antibacterial activity of the electrospun nonwoven fabric were investigated. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to examine the morphology of the electrospun nonwoven fabric, which had bead-free morphology ultrafine fibers. Antibacterial tests revealed that the Hypericum perforatum oil-loaded poly(lactic acid) nonwoven fabrics obtained had high antibacterial efficiency against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, indicating a strong potential for use in biomedical applications.
Highlights
Various solutions containing different concentrations of Hypericum perforatum oil (HPO) were prepared and used in the development of fibers to investigate the effect of electrospinning solution composition on the structure of the nonwoven fabrics and the electrospinning process
This result is in agreement with the data previously reported by Štular et al, who founded a similar average diameter for electrospun poly(lactic acid) (PLA) fibers (~1.4 μm) [73]
Preliminary measurements of Hypericum perforatum oil-load poly(lactic acid) electrospun mat as an antibacterial material was performed in vitro analysis and this study investigated some performance properties required for its use as a textile material
Summary
Researchers have focused on the development of new materials with a low detrimental impact on the environment, due to the increasing growth of the world’s population and pollution. Poly(lactic acid) (PLA) is a biodegradable, recyclable polyester made from renewable feedstock, that is nowadays one of the most promising polymers for commercially replacing poly(styrene) (PS), poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), high-density poly(ethylene) (HDPE), and low-density poly(ethylene) (LDPE). Lactic acid is produced as a raw material by fermenting glucose or sucrose and is refined to high purity. PLA has been used in food packaging, textiles, and, more recently, engineering plastics and currently is a niche product with significant growth potential [1,2,3,4,5,6].
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