Fabrication and characterization of 5-FLUOROURACIL loaded multilayered electrospun nanofiber for the treatment OF SKIN cancer

Abstract

The aim of this study was to fabricate, characterize and evaluate mechanically stable, biocompatible multilayered nanofibers (M-NFs) consisting of polycaprolactone (PCL)/methyl cellulose (MC) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/PCL loaded with 5-fluorouracil for the treatment of skin cancer. The electrospinning technique was used to develop M-NFs followed by morphological, physicochemical, and mechanical characteristics. The fiber morphology and diameter of M-NFs were investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The optimized M-NFs were characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, differential scanning Calorimetry (DSC), Thermal gravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Atomic force microscopy (AFM). Parameters such as contact angle, Headspace Gas Chromatography (HS-GC), dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMTA), mucoadhesive strength, and rate of biodegradation were studied. Further in-vitro drug release and cell-cytotoxicity studies were performed using A375 cell line. The SEM results showed the uniform morphology of optimized NFs without beads with fiber diameter in the range of 100–300 nm. FTIR analysis shows strong intermolecular interactions between molecules of M-NFs. DSC-TGA analysis showed strong thermal properties. XRD analysis revealed that NFs are crystalline in nature. Maximum tensile strength was obtained up to 7.34 MPa which is desired for topical application. AFM was measured for exaggeration of the fiber diameter and found good surface morphology. In addition, the results of contact angle, HS-GC, DMTA, mucoadhesive strength, drug release data, and cell cytotoxicity study showed that prepared M-NFs would be considered an appropriate carrier for skin cancer application.