Large-Scale and Rapid Preparation of Nanofibrous Meshes and Their Application for Drug-Loaded Multilayer Mucoadhesive Patch Fabrication for Mouth Ulcer Treatment

Abstract

Electrospinning provides a simple and convenient method to fabricate nanofibrous meshes. However, the nanofiber productivity is often limited to laboratory scale, which cannot satisfy the requirements of practical application. In this study, we developed a novel needleless electrospinning spinneret based on a double ring slit to fabricate drug loaded nanofibrous meshes. In contrast to conventional single-needle electrospinning spinneret, our needless spinneret can significantly improve nanofiber productivity due to the simultaneous formation of multiple jets during electrospinning. Curcumin loaded poly (L-lactic acid) (PLLA) nanofiber meshes with various concentrations and large scale were manufactured by employing our developed needleless spinneret-based electrospinning device. We systematically investigated the drug release behaviors, antioxidant properties, anti-inflammatory attributes, and cytotoxicity of the curcumin loaded PLLA nanofibrous meshes. Furthermore, a bilayer nanofibrous composite mesh was successfully *

Mucoadhesive Electrospun Fibre-Based Technologies for Oral Medicine

“…Recently, there has been interest in high-throughput nanofibre production to allow more economical mass production. Needleless electrospinning involves injecting charge into a trough or surface containing polymer solution, causing many polymer jets to be produced simultaneously [ 41 , 42 ]. Centrifugal electrospinning involves a heated rotating cylinder as the spinneret, which ejects molten polymer through narrow outlets under a combination of electrostatic and centrifugal force.…”

“…Curcumin was shown to maintain its anti-inflammatory properties by measuring reduced pro-inflammatory gene expression by activated human monocytes. The release of curcumin from the fibres was sustained over a period of two weeks [ 41 ]. A relatively slow release, which is typical of hydrophobic fibres loaded with a hydrophobic drug and would potentially be disadvantageous for more expensive drugs, given that shorter residence times are more appropriate for RAS ulcers.…”

“…Yellow layer: curcumin-loaded PLLA nanofibre mesh; blue layer: diclofenac sodium-loaded PEO nanofibre mesh. Reprinted with permission from [ 41 ]. Copyright (2019) American Chemical Society.…”

Recent Advances on Nanofiber Fabrications: Unconventional State-of-the-Art Spinning Techniques

“…Contrary to conventional electrospinning, in the needleless electrospinning technique, an electrical force is applied on the liquid surface directly without using a needle nozzle [ 23 , 29 ]. To date, many needleless electrospinning techniques have been reported with systematic variation in the spinneret geometry, e.g., spiral coil [ 30 , 31 ], rotary cone [ 32 ], sprocket wheel disk [ 33 ], rotating disk [ 34 ], self-cleaning threaded rod [ 35 ], twisted wire [ 36 , 37 ], conical wire coil [ 38 ], metal dish [ 39 ], double-ring [ 40 ], curved slot [ 41 , 42 ], bowl [ 43 ], and tube [ 44 ]. The open spinneret in the needleless electrospinning suppresses the clogging of the tip, facilitating multiple jet operations.…”

“…Contrary to conventional electrospinning which is a closed system, in a needleless spinneret, a polymer solution is exposed to air, inducing solvent vaporization during electrospinning and hence, resulting in inconsistency in the quality of fabricated fibers due to the changes in polymer solution concentration [ 23 ]. Recently, Wei et al introduced a double-ring slit as a spinneret for electrospinning to address this challenge and to improve fabrication productivity by simultaneous formation of multiple jets during electrospinning [ 40 ]. The schematic diagrams for the double-ring slit needleless spinneret (DRSNS) setup are presented in Figure 2 A,C, and the photographs from front and top views also are shown in Figure 2 D,E.…”