Highly Elastic and Water Stable Zein Microfibers as a Potential Drug Delivery System for Wound Healing

Abstract

The development of biomaterials for wound healing applications requires providing a number of properties, such as antimicrobial action, facilitation of cell proliferation, biocompatibility and biodegradability. The aim of the present study was to investigate morphological and mechanical properties of zein-based microfibers, ultimately aimed at creating an environment suitable for wound healing. This was achieved through co-axial electrospinning of core–shell microfibers, with zein protein in the core and polyethylene oxide (PEO) in the shell. Small amounts of PEO or stearic acid were additionally incorporated into the fiber core to modify the morphology and mechanical properties of zein fibers. The presence of PEO in the core was found to be essential for the formation of tubular fibers, whereas PEO in the shell enhanced the stability of the microfibers in water and ensured high elasticity of the microfiber mats. Tetracycline hydrochloride was present in an amorphous form within the fibers, and displayed a burst release as a result of pore-formation in the fibers. The developed systems exhibited antimicrobial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, and showed no cytotoxic effect on fibroblasts. Biocompatibility, antimicrobial activity and favorable morphological and mechanical properties make the developed zein-based microfibers a potential biomaterial for wound healing purposes.

Electrospinning Proteins for Wound Healing Purposes: Opportunities and Challenges

“…Due to its high evaporation rate, it leads to needle clogging, formation of ribbon-shaped fibers and results in poor water stability of the fibers, which in turn leads to the loss of porous structure of the fiber mat upon contact with water [ 41 , 42 ]. This can be overcome either by cross-linking zein with UV light [ 71 ] or by co-axial electrospinning with ethanol [ 41 ] or polyethylene oxide (PEO) as a shell solution [ 54 ]. The behavior of zein in aqueous ethanol solution is described in more detail elsewhere [ 72 ].…”

“…There are various studies, which focus on electrospinning zein to produce antimicrobial wound dressings ( Table 1 ). Zein has been electrospun alone [ 45 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 ], together with synthetic polymers such as polycaprolactone (PCL) [ 47 , 48 ], PEO [ 54 ], PU [ 27 ] and PLA [ 55 ] as well as with natural polymers and substances including gum arabic [ 47 , 48 ], hyaluronic acid [ 46 ], cinnamaldehyde [ 26 ] and gum traganth [ 55 ]. Antimicrobial agents that have been incorporated into zein-based fibers include a wide range of antibiotics [ 26 , 45 , 46 , 49 , 51 , 54 , 55 ], antibacterial nanoparticles [ 27 , 50 , 52 ] as well as antimicrobial plant extracts [ 46 , 73 ].…”

“…And even if electrospinning is successful, the final product often requires cross-linking to ensure stability of fibers in water. For proteins with more amphiphilic nature such as zein, which can be dissolved in aqueous solvents, the final product loses its fibrous structure upon contact with water and becomes more elastic [ 54 ].…”

Experimental design to evaluate properties of electrospun fibers of zein/poly (ethylene oxide) for biomaterial applications

“…They observed that increasing the polymer concentration and aging time can facilitate the formation of continuous fibers or ribbons. Akhmetova et al 31 reported a production of zein coaxial electrospinning of core‐shell microfibers, with zein in the core and PEO in the shell for wound healing applications. The authors concluded that the addition of PEO improves electrospun fiber formation and increases the elasticity of the microfiber mats.…”

Fast Dissolving Electrospun Nanofibers Fabricated from Jelly Fig Polysaccharide/Pullulan for Drug Delivery Applications

“…Recent studies demonstrated that the electrospinning technique has been widely employed in health care systems including drug delivery, diagnostics, theranostics, tissue engineering, and wound healing [ 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. The multilayer electrospun membrane-based personalized reusable face mask has also been developed with photothermal application to disinfect the virus particles [ 25 ].…”