Understanding release kinetics and collapse proof suture retention response of curcumin loaded electrospun mats based on aliphatic polyesters and their blends

Abstract

The paper aims at designing and fabrication of PLA/PCL blended suture resistant electrospun mats (EMs) encapsulating non-toxic curcumin and optimization of its release behavior, to facilitate its sustained release at the targeted areas, without complexation with any chemical and/or synthetic drug. The release of curcumin from PLA/PCL blended EMs followed a diffusion-controlled mechanism, as evident from the agreement of the experimental release data with Peppas- Korsmeyer, Higuchi, and Kopcha model. The curcumin embedded EMs have effectively rendered a release confirming to a new generalized logarithmic model. PLA/PCL blended EMs have proved to be an excellent carrier system, exhibiting enhanced cumulative curcumin release with an increase in curcumin loading. The evaluation of structural and viscoelastic properties of the fabricated EMs showed an increase in modulus and strength, along with a subsequent decrease in elongation, with an increase in curcumin content. Suture-induced cooperative collapse dynamics the EMs have been found to be a three-stage process involving stable, stable-unstable, and fast-unstable structural failure corresponding to network realignment, lateral pullout/fracture of fibers, and divergent tearing along the crack path. The viscoelastic responses showed a prominent shift in glass transition temperature (Tg) of the PCL phase indicating the development of curcumin-induced microstructural changes attributed to the H-bonding interaction with polymer segments of PLA/PCL-based EMs. Our study demonstrates, functionally efficient designing of PLA/PCL-based curcumin-loaded biodegradable EMs with sustained retention of tunable mechanical properties and hydrophobicity, irrespective of the extent of (in-vitro) curcumin release.