Manufacturing of Zinc Oxide Nanoparticle (ZnO NP)-Loaded Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA) Nanostructured Mats Using Ginger Extract for Tissue Engineering Applications

Abstract

In this research, as an alternative to chemical and physical methods, environmentally and cost-effective antimicrobial zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NP) were produced by the green synthesis method. The current study focuses on the production of ZnO NP starting from adequate precursor and Zingiber officinale aqueous root extracts (ginger). The produced ZnO NP was loaded into electrospun nanofibers at different concentrations for various tissue engineering applications such as wound dressings. The produced ZnO NPs and ZnO NP-loaded nanofibers were examined by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) for morphological assessments and Fourier-transform infrared spectrum (FT-IR) for chemical assessments. The disc diffusion method was used to test the antimicrobial activity of ZnO NP and ZnO NP-loaded nanofibers against three representatives strains, Escherichia coli (Gram-negative bacteria), Staphylococcus aureus (Gram-positive bacteria), and Candida albicans (fungi) microorganisms. The strength and stretching of the produced fibers were assessed using tensile tests. Since water absorption and weight loss behaviors are very important in tissue engineering applications, swelling and degradation analyses were applied to the produced nanofibers. Finally, the MTT test was applied to analyze biocompatibility. According to the findings, ZnO NP-loaded nanofibers were successfully synthesized using a green precipitation approach and can be employed in tissue engineering applications such as wound dressing.

Keywords: ZnO NPs; antimicrobial effect; electrospinning; tissue engineering; wound dressing.

Figure 1

Production of ZnO NP by green synthesis method using ginger roots, SEM images of ZnO NP and antimicrobial result, and electrospinning of nanofibers by mixing zinc oxide nanoparticles with PVA polymer. (a) Cleaned and dried gingers; (b) filtered ginger extract, (c) mixing the ginger extract with zinc acetate dihydrate dissolved in water; (d) mixed in a mixer for 2 h, (e) centrifuge and discard the supernatant; (f) dried in the oven for 4 h; (g) the last version of ZnO NP; (h) SEM images of the obtained ZnO NP were taken; (i) the antimicrobial effect of the obtained ZnO NP was examined; (j) the obtained ZnO NP are mixed with PVA and nanofiber is obtained by electrospinning method.

Figure 2

FT-IR spectrum of pure PVA, ZnO NPs, and PVA/ZnO composite nanofibers. (a) ZnO NP, (b) PVA fibers, (c) PVA/20%ZnO NPs solution, (d) PVA/40%ZnO NPs solution, and (e) PVA/60%ZnO NPs solution.

Figure 3

SEM images and pore size histogram of (A) pure PVA, (B) PVA/20%ZnO, (C) PVA/40%ZnO, and (D) PVA/60%ZnO nanofibers.

Figure 4

Mechanical parameters of all fibers: the tensile strength (Mpa) and strain break (%).

Figure 5

Swelling (A) and Degradation (B) kinetics of nanofibers in PBS 7.4 at 37 °C.

Figure 6

Antimicrobial activity of four different concentrations of PVA/ZnO fibers in E. coli, S. aureus, and C. albicans by disk diffusion method.

Figure 7

Percentage of cell attachment on the TCPS as control and electrospun fibers. Statistical significance ‘p’ is shown as p < 0.05 = ‘*’ and p < 0.01 = ‘**’.

Figure 8

Viability of L929 cells cultured on pure PVA and 20, 40, and 60% ZnO included PVA electrospun fibers. Statistical significance ‘p’ is shown as p < 0.05 = ‘*’, p < 0.01 = ‘**’.