Physical and biological characteristics of electrospun poly (vinyl alcohol) and reduced graphene oxide nanofibrous structure

Abstract

The fabrication of graphene-based nanocomposites has been a topic of increasing interest due to graphene’s exceptional physical properties and the ability to enhance the properties of various polymeric materials. Evaluating the biocompatibility of these nanocomposites is crucial to ensure their safe and effective use in biomedical applications. This study characterized and assessed the biocompatibility of previously fabricated electrospun polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/reduced graphene oxide rGO fibrous structures by conducting a comprehensive assessment of their physical and biological characteristics. Contact angle measurements revealed that adding rGO to electrospun PVA fibers enhanced the surface wettability, improving the fibrous structure’s PBS absorption capacity and degradation behavior. Including the rGO content resulted in a higher water vapor transmission rate, reaching ∼48 g/m2·day for PVA + 0.5 wt.% rGO and ∼45 g/m2·day for PVA + 1.0 wt.% rGO, compared to ∼40 g/m2·day for electrospun PVA fibers. Cell culture studies, including MTT assay, alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity analysis, alizarin red staining, fluorescence microscopy, and SEM analyses, demonstrated that electrospun PVA + 1.0 wt.% rGO nanocomposites exhibited superior cell viability, proliferation, and growth compared to other samples, due to the improved physical properties of the PVA + 1.0 wt.% rGO fibrous structure.