Fabrication and in vitro characterization of nisin-incorporated PCL/PEG electrospun nanofibers for wound dressing applications

The demand for wound care is increasing globally and the traditional wound dressings offer limited support to the healing process, failing to meet the requirements of current healthcare system. Drug-controlled release nanotechnology has garnered interest recently in the field of biomedicine. Electrospun nanofibers are considered as an advanced wound dressing due to their unique structure and a biological function similar to the extracellular matrix. In this study, a polycaprolactone (PCL)-polyethylene glycol (PEG) loaded with nisin was developed by electrospinning technique. The fabricated nanofiber was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The degradation index, in vitro release studies, antioxidant activity, and cell cytotoxicity analyses of the nanofibers were also performed. The antibacterial activity of the nanofiber was evaluated against wound causing skin pathogens like Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The FTIR data demonstrate the interactions between PCL, PEG, and nisin. The presence of nisin in the fiber was confirmed by the characteristic bands of nisin at 3398.63, 1643.23, and 1242.17 cm-1. The nanofibers exhibited maximum controlled nisin release of 94.3% at 24 h. The nisin-loaded nanofibers exhibited antibacterial activity against all the indicator organisms used in the study. About 78% viability was observed on nisin-loaded nanofibers during the MTT assay. The results indicated that the fabricated antibacterial nanofiber has the potential for wound healing application and the treatment of bacterial infections in wounds.