Abstract
In this investigation, the influence of gamma radiation in a therapeutic dose, such as the dose generally administered (on average) in two cycles of radiotherapy treatment, was evaluated for the chemical characteristics of nanocomposite films formed by polycaprolactone (PCL) with oxide nanoparticles of ZnO (ZnO NPs). The PCL nanocomposite films with ZnO NPs (PCL/ZnO NCs) were obtained via solvent casting method, using chloroform as solvent, with ZnO NPs mass contents in relation to polymer masses equal to: 02%; 0.4%; 0.6%; 0.8% and 1.0%. After this step, the films obtained were exposed to gamma radiation in a dose of 140 Gy in the presence of air and at room temperature. The influence of gamma radiation in a therapeutic dose on the chemical characteristics of nanocomposite films obtained through the solvent casting method, was accessed through absorption spectroscopy in the infrared region. Our results indicate that the chemical structure of PCL is preserved after exposure to gamma radiation at 140 Gy.
Highlights
Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a semi-crystalline, thermoplastic, biocompatible, biodegradable polymer, with hexanoate as a repeating unit (Labet & Thielemans, 2009; Woodruff & Hutmacher, 2010)
3.1 Preparation of nanocomposite films The PCL/ZnO NCs films with different percentages by mass of ZnO NPs, exhibiting a whitish color, were obtained through the solvent casting method as shown in Figure 1and irradiated at 140 Gy
The morphological and structural characterization and effects of gamma radiation in a therapeutic dose on the chemical characteristics of the obtained films will be detailed
Summary
Polycaprolactone (PCL) is a semi-crystalline, thermoplastic, biocompatible, biodegradable polymer, with hexanoate as a repeating unit (Labet & Thielemans, 2009; Woodruff & Hutmacher, 2010). For some biomedical applications and in the food packaging sector, polycaprolactone does not have satisfactory thermal, mechanical and antibimicrobial activity properties (Lopez-Figueras et al, 2017). ZnO oxide is a biocompatible, semiconductor agent with antibimicrobial properties (Augustine et al, 2014; Augustine et al, 2016). Among the applications that have been proposed for the nanocomposite formed by PCL with ZnO NPs, is its use in implants (Mallakpour & Nouruzi, 2016). The use of nanocomposites in implants in areas close to regions that are exposed to radiotherapy treatment, may compromise their properties, contributing to the degradation of the polymer matrix (Cooke & Whittington, 2016)
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