Antibacterial properties of Aloe vera gel-finished cotton fabric

In this study, cotton fabrics were finished with Aloe vera gel along with 1,2,3,4-butanetetracarboxlic acid as a crosslinking agent using the pad-dry-cure method. The finished fabrics were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The infrared spectra confirmed that the active ingredients of A. vera gel attached to the hydroxyl groups of cotton fabric via a carboxylic acid cross-linking agent. The antibacterial activity of A. vera-finished fabrics was qualitatively evaluated by the AATCC-147 method and scanning electron microscopy. It was observed that A. vera gel-finished fabric has much less bacterial adhesion. The A. vera gel-finished [concentration ≥3 % (w/v)] cotton fabric inhibited the growth of both gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli) bacteria. The mechanism of cell death by A. vera gel was evaluated using transmission electron microscopy (TEM). TEM photographs suggested that the cell death is due to the destruction of the bacterial cell wall. The finished fabric was also evaluated for its performance properties such as tensile strength, crease recovery angle, bending length, etc.