Electrospun gelatin fiber mats containing a herbal—Centella asiatica—extract and releasecharacteristic of asiaticoside

Abstract

Ultra-fine gelatin (type A, porcine skin,∼180 Bloom) fiber mats containing a methanolic crude extract of Centella asiatica (L.) Urban, amedicinal plant widely known for its traditional medical applications including its woundhealing ability, were fabricated, for the first time, from the neat gelatin solution (22%w/v in 70 vol% acetic acid) containing the crude extract (mCA) in various amounts (i.e.5–30 wt% based on the weight of gelatin powder) by electrospinning. Incorporation of mCAin the neat gelatin solution did not affect both the morphology and the size of themCA-loaded gelatin fibers, as both of the neat and the mCA-loaded gelatin fibers weresmooth and the average diameters of these fibers ranged between 226 and 232 nm. Thecross-linked mCA-loaded e-spun gelatin fiber mat from the neat gelatin solutioncontaining 30 wt% of mCA was further investigated for the release characteristic ofasiaticoside, identified as the most active compound associated with the healing ofwounds, in two different types of releasing medium, i.e. acetate buffer and thebuffer containing 10 vol% of methanol, based on the thin-layer chromatography(TLC)–densitometry technique. Based on the unit weight of the actual amount ofasiaticoside present in the specimens, the total amount of asiaticoside releasedfrom the fiber mat specimens was lower than that from the film counterpartswhile, based on the unit weight of the specimens, an opposite trend was observed.