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. 2019 Nov 26:7:346.
doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2019.00346. eCollection 2019.

Physical and Antibacterial Properties of Peppermint Essential Oil Loaded Poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL) Electrospun Fiber Mats for Wound Healing

Irem Unalan  1 , Benedikt Slavik  2 , Andrea Buettner  2 , Wolfgang H Goldmann  3 , Gerhard Frank  1 , Aldo R Boccaccini  1
Affiliations

Physical and Antibacterial Properties of Peppermint Essential Oil Loaded Poly (ε-caprolactone) (PCL) Electrospun Fiber Mats for Wound Healing

Irem Unalan et al. Front Bioeng Biotechnol. .

Abstract

The aim of this study was to fabricate and characterize various concentrations of peppermint essential oil (PEP) loaded on poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) electrospun fiber mats for healing applications, where PEP was intended to impart antibacterial activity to the fibers. SEM images illustrated that the morphology of all electrospun fiber mats was smooth, uniform, and bead-free. The average fiber diameter was reduced by the addition of PEP from 1.6 ± 0.1 to 1.0 ± 0.2 μm. Functional groups of the fibers were determined by Raman spectroscopy. Gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy (GC-MS) analysis demonstrated the actual PEP content in the samples. In vitro degradation was determined by measuring weight loss and their morphology change, showing that the electrospun fibers slightly degraded by the addition of PEP. The wettability of PCL and PEP loaded electrospun fiber mats was measured by determining contact angle and it was shown that wettability increased with the incorporation of PEP. The antimicrobial activity results revealed that PEP loaded PCL electrospun fiber mats exhibited inhibition against Staphylococcus aureus (gram-positive) and Escherichia coli (gram-negative) bacteria. In addition, an in-vitro cell viability assay using normal human dermal fibroblast (NHDF) cells revealed improved cell viability on PCL, PCLPEP1.5, PCLPEP3, and PCLGEL6 electrospun fiber mats compared to the control (CNT) after 48 h cell culture. Our findings showed for the first time PEP loaded PCL electrospun fiber mats with antibiotic-free antibacterial activity as promising candidates for wound healing applications.

Keywords: antibacterial activity; electrospinning; peppermint essential oil; poly (ε-caprolactone); wound healing.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Schematic illustration for the preparation of electrospun fiber mats with and without PEP.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The morphology and fiber diameter distribution of PCL (a,b), PCLPEP1.5 (c,d), PCLPEP3 (e,f), and PCLPEP6 (g,h) electrospun fiber mats, respectively.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The Raman spectra of pure PEP (a), PCL (b), PCLPEP1.5 (c), PCLPEP3 (d), and PCLPEP6 (e) electrospun fiber mats.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Water contact angle of PCL, PCLPEP1.5, PCLPEP3, and PCLPEP6 electrospun fiber mats (n = 3, sample in triplicate,*p < 0.05).
Figure 5
Figure 5
SEM images of PCL (a), PCLPEP1.5 (b), PCLPEP3 (c), and PCLPEP6 (d) electrospun fiber mats after 14 days incubation in PBS at 37°C.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Weight loss percentage of PCL, PCPPEP1.5, PCLPEP3, and PCLPEP6 electrospun fiber mats incubated in PBS at 37°C for 1, 3, 7, and 14 days (n = 3, sample in triplicate,*p < 0.05).
Figure 7
Figure 7
Gas chromatography profile of menthol showing it as a main component of PEP.
Figure 8
Figure 8
Relative bacteria viability of S. aureus (Gram-pozitive) and E. coli (Gram-negative) on the different type of electrospun fiber mats (PCL, PCLPEP1.5, PCLPEP3, and PCLPEP6) after 3, 6, 24, and 48 h incubation (n = 3, sample in triplicate,*p < 0.05).
Figure 9
Figure 9
The cell viability of PCL, PCLPEP1.5, PCLPEP3, and PCLPEP6 electrospun mats in comparison with control (CNT) (n = 6,*p < 0.05).
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