Abstract
Skin burns and ulcers are considered hard-to-heal wounds due to their high infection risk. For this reason, designing new options for wound dressings is a growing need. The objective of this work is to investigate the properties of poly (ε-caprolactone)/poly (vinyl-pyrrolidone) (PCL/PVP) microfibers produced via electrospinning along with sorbents loaded with Argovit™ silver nanoparticles (Ag-Si/Al2O3) as constituent components for composite wound dressings. The physicochemical properties of the fibers and sorbents were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). The mechanical properties of the fibers were also evaluated. The results of this work showed that the tested fibrous scaffolds have melting temperatures suitable for wound dressings design (58–60 °C). In addition, they demonstrated to be stable even after seven days in physiological solution, showing no macroscopic damage due to PVP release at the microscopic scale. Pelletized sorbents with the higher particle size demonstrated to have the best water uptake capabilities. Both, fibers and sorbents showed antimicrobial activity against Gram-negative bacteria Pseudomona aeruginosa and Escherichia coli, Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus and the fungus Candida albicans. The best physicochemical properties were obtained with a scaffold produced with a PCL/PVP ratio of 85:15, this polymeric scaffold demonstrated the most antimicrobial activity without affecting the cell viability of human fibroblast. Pelletized Ag/Si-Al2O3-3 sorbent possessed the best water uptake capability and the higher antimicrobial activity, over time between all the sorbents tested. The combination of PCL/PVP 85:15 microfibers with the chosen Ag/Si-Al2O3-3 sorbent will be used in the following work for creation of wound dressings possessing exudate retention, biocompatibility and antimicrobial activity.
Highlights
Appropriate wound management is critical for a suitable healing process; rapid wound closure is desired and is usually achieved using wound dressings
Ag sorbent was prepared from silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) solution, named ArgovitTM, which was kindly donated by Dr Vasily Burmistrov from the Scientific and Production Center Vector-Vita (Novosibirsk, Russia)
Despite the fact that PCL and PVP are polymers with no antimicrobial properties, our results showed that pure PCL in the form of fibers show slight antimicrobial activity for S. aureus and E. coli (Figure S5); similar results were previously reported by Lagarón and his group [96]
Summary
Appropriate wound management is critical for a suitable healing process; rapid wound closure is desired and is usually achieved using wound dressings. No wound dressings that is ideal for all wound types exists but all of them must fulfill a series of minimal requirements such as: rapid healing, prevention of infection and affordable cost for the patient [1]. The increased exudate production of some wounds can delay the healing process by slowing or preventing cell proliferation and interfering with growth factor availability. Some wound types are perceived to have more copious amounts of exudate [4]. Different kinds of wounds under diverse conditions produce different types and amounts of exudate. It has been reported that burn wounds produce approximately 5000 g/m2 of exudate per day, while venous leg ulcers exudate production ranges between 4000 and 12,000 g/m2/day [5]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
