Preparation and Characteristic of Antibacterial Facemasks with Chinese Herbal Microcapsules

Abstract

Along with the current increases in human activities, air pollution, especially that generated from bioaerosols, has begun to receive more extensive attention. Among the bioaerosols, bacteria and fungi can result in organisms that are pathogenic to animals and humans. Therefore, a biological protective respirator with an antibacterial function would be a significant method by which to prevent epidemic spread of respiratory infectious diseases and protect human health. In this study, a type of facemask with an antibacterial function was prepared. The structure of the respirator included a respirator body and an inner filter layer that was assembled with herbal microcapsules. A kind of Chinese herb microcapsule developed through a cross-linking reaction method was successfully prepared to serve as an important component of the respirator. Scutellaria baicalensis (SB), a typical Chinese medicine, was employed to prepare the Chinese herb microcapsule. Three kinds of filter cloth (cotton, polyester fiber, and non-woven fabric, respectively) were employed to assemble with Chinese herb microcapsule. Meanwhile, the antibacterial performance and adhesion of the Chinese herb microcapsule for E. coli and S. aureus were investigated. The measurement results revealed that (i) the antibacterial efficiency of the Chinese herb microcapsule and the respirator filter was above approximately 99.999 and 96.000%, respectively; (ii) the adhesion of the herb microcapsules was still excellent after the filter was washed 100 times; (iii) the as-prepared antibacterial filter modified by an O 2 plasma-surface (PSM-O 2 ) treatment exhibited excellent antibacterial performance. Finally, a chamber simulation utilizing an Anderson first order sampler was designed to simulate the effect of wearing the antibacterial filter in a real environment. Overall, the respirator exhibited excellent biological protection properties compared with general masks, which will satisfy a vast number of application prospects.

Antimicrobial sustainable biopolymers for biomedical plastics applications – an overview

“…The central layer of herbal microcapsules has been taken up from a typical Chinese medicine called Scutellaria baicalensis (SB). This study also found that the adhesion of the herbal microcapsules was still excellent after washing the filter layer 100 times [105].…”

A comprehensive review on antimicrobial face masks: an emerging weapon in fighting pandemics

“…The surfaces coated AMA are reported to be effective in deactivating/killing microorganisms and preventing the formation of biolms. The active moieties which impart the biocidal qualities include metal and metal oxides, 75,[84][85][86][87][88][89][90][91][92][93][94][95] quaternary ammonium or phosphonium groups, [96][97][98][99][100] antimicrobial polymers, [101][102][103][104][105][106][107] N-halamine compounds, [108][109][110][111][112] antimicrobial peptides, 105 and natural compounds, 82,[113][114][115][116][117][118][119][120][121] as depicted in Fig. 6.…”

“…119 A recent study reports the development of a three-layer antibacterial face mask consisting of a nonwoven PP outer layer, antibacterial lter layer and an inner medical cotton yarn layer. 120 Microcapsule made from the extract of Scutellaria baicalensis was used as an antimicrobial agent in face mask. The microcapsules were incorporated to lter clothes such as cotton, polyester and nonwoven PP by soaking followed by plasma mediated surface modication.…”

Medicinal Plants in COVID-19: Potential and Limitations

“…For the medicinal plants discussed here, in addition to requiring more direct evidence of their role in COVID-19 management, other concerns that remains to be addressed include identification of bioactive ingredients, safe dose specific to formulations, and potential drug-herb interaction prior to entering a clinical trial. Innovative ways to utilise the antimicrobial properties of medicinal plants beyond systemic absorption, such as development of medicinal plant-coated antimicrobial mask ( Wang et al, 2017 ), can be further examined.…”