New wound dressing polymeric nanofiber containing green tea extract prepared by electrospinning method

Abstract

The effect of green tea extract as a natural and ecofriendly antibacterial additive on the healing effect of chitosan/ polyethylene oxide wound dressing nanofiber was investigated. Three different polymeric nanofiber composite including chitosan, chitosan/polyethylene oxide and chitosan/polyethylene oxide/green tea extract, was produced by electrospinning method and was used as wound dressing. Affecting parameters on electrospinning method such as voltage, feed rate, nozzlecollector distance and content of green tea in nanofiber structure were studied and optimized. The morphology of electrospun nanofibers was studied with use of scanning electron microscope. The average diameters of prepared nanofibers was determined by Image J software. The optimum conditions for preparation of electrospun nanofibers were: Voltage; 20 kV, feed rate; 0.5 ml/h, nozzle-collector distance; 10 cm, and chitosan/polyethylene oxide weight ratio; 0.9. Stability, water absorption and degradation of prepared nanofibers were investigated by placing the prepared nanofibers for 24 hours in a solution of acetate buffer with a pH of 5.5 and a temperature of 37 °C. Moreover, the antibacterial activity of composite scaffolds were tested by Agar plate method by two type bacteria including Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus. Furthermore, the healing ability of the prepared nanofibers was studied on the rat’s wound. Chitosan/polyethylene oxide/ green tea showed the best healing effects in comparison with the other prepared wound dressings. These results confirmed that green tea extract helps to keep wound surface moist, reduces inflammation and increases the speed of recovery and healing.