Abstract
Fiber based antibacterial materials have gained an enormous attraction for the researchers in these days. In this study, a novel Sericin Encapsulated Silver Nanoclusters (sericin-AgNCs) were synthesized through single pot and green synthesis route. Subsequently these sericin-AgNCs were incorporated into ultrafine electrospun cellulose acetate (CA) fibers for assessing the antibacterial performance. The physicochemical properties of sericin-AgNCs/CA composite fibers were investigated by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), field emission electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and wide X-ray diffraction (XRD). The antibacterial properties of sericin-AgNCs/CA composite fibers against Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) were systematically evaluated. The results showed that sericin-AgNCs incorporated in ultrafine CA fibers have played a vital role for antibacterial activity. An amount of 0.17 mg/mL sericin-AgNCs to CA fibers showed more than 90% results and elevated upto >99.9% with 1.7 mg/mL of sericin-AgNCs against E. coli. The study indicated that sericin-AgNCs/CA composite confirms an enhanced antibacterial efficiency, which could be used as a promising antibacterial product.
Highlights
Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) results confirmed the presence of sericin-AgNCs incorporated within ultrafine cellulose acetate (CA) fibers
The antibacterial activities of sericin-AgNCs mediated ultrafine CA fibers were examined by shake flask method against the E. coli and S. aureus protocols
The results showed that sericin-AgNCs loaded ultrafine CA
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. The positively charged Ag ions, due to their strong affinity to sulfur proteins, adhere to the cell wall and cytoplasmic membrane [5,6,7] This results into the blockage of bacterial respiratory system and demolishing the cell production. Jian-Cheng group has reported the antibacterial performance of ultra-small DHLA-AgNCs and the results showed that silver ions of rich NCs could act as efficient nano reservoirs for antibacterial activity [19,20]. There is a considerable need to enhance antibacterial efficiency of electrospun membrane and its biocompatibility Due to their ultra small size, it is assumed that metal nanoclusters can fulfil the above purpose. Sericin mediated silver nanoclusters were prepared and incorporated into ultrafine CA nanofibers in order to assess the antibacterial activity of sericin-AgNCs/CA composite membrane against against S. aureus and E. coli. To the best of our knowledge, sericin-AgNCs were synthesized for the very first time, and incorporated into ultrafine CA fibers for antibacterial application
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