Cytotoxicity of Electrospun mats loaded with antimicrobial agents towards Macrophages

• Autor(a) principal: Ribeiro, Pedro Miguel Coimbra
• Data de Publicação: 2023
• Tipo de documento: Dissertação
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Científico de Acesso Aberto de Portugal (Repositórios Cientìficos)
• Texto Completo: http://hdl.handle.net/10362/162942
• topic: metallic nanoparticles; macrophages; anti-septic agents; electrospinning; cytotoxicity; Domínio/Área Científica::Engenharia e Tecnologia::Outras Engenharias e Tecnologias

New developments in nanotechnology have transformed wound treatment by introducing materi- als with better absorption and antimicrobial properties. Biocompatible nanoparticles, like gold (Au), silver (Ag), and zinc (Zn), have become promising candidates for promoting wound healing. This re- search used a chemical reduction method to create Au, Ag, and Zn nanoparticles. Additionally, nano- fibers were made using electrospun solutions consisting of polycaprolactone (PCL), chitosan (CS), and gelatine (GEL), which included varying amounts of nanoparticles and antiseptics like povidone-iodine (PVP-I), chlorhexidine (CHX), and octenidine dihydrochloride (OCT). The study examined these na- noparticles, polymer-based materials, and antiseptics in detail, highlighting their various interactions. The findings have significant implications for biomedical science, antimicrobial applications, and the development of biomaterials. Among the nanoparticles studied, AuNPs stood out as excellent candidates for applications that require precise particle sizes with remarkable uniformity. ZnONPs also showed size uniformity, while AgNPs were slightly less consistent but still within acceptable ranges. Further analysis using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and dynamic light scattering (DLS) revealed how various additives affected fibre morphology within PCL and GEL mats. Some additives led to better fibres, while others created broader distributions of fibre diameters. In chitosan (CS) mats, cross-linking reduced fibre diameter without compromising mat structure, and additives had minimal impact on fibre morphology. Cytotoxicity tests showed that some formulations were non-cytotoxic while others had varying degrees of cytotoxicity. Finally, the antibacterial properties of AgNPs, AuNPs, and ZnONPs against E. coli were tested, with AgNPs showing promise in fighting bacterial infections, especially at lower concentrations.