Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil

Alginate is a linear biodegradable polysaccharide polymer, which is bio-renewable and widely used for various biomedical applications. For the next generation of medical textiles, alginate nanofibres are desirable for their use in wound dressings that are biocompatible, sustainable, and abundantly a...

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Main Authors: Hao Lu, Jonathan A. Butler, Nicole S. Britten, Prabhuraj D. Venkatraman, Sameer S. Rahatekar
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
Series:Nanomaterials
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/8/2062
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spelling doaj-dbc5c298f5f6486f82d8dc52a15077d12021-08-26T14:09:21ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912021-08-01112062206210.3390/nano11082062Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential OilHao Lu0Jonathan A. Butler1Nicole S. Britten2Prabhuraj D. Venkatraman3Sameer S. Rahatekar4Enhanced Composites and Structures Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL, UKDepartment of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, UKDepartment of Life Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, Manchester Metropolitan University, Chester Street, Manchester M1 5GD, UKManchester Fashion Institute, Faculty of Arts and Humanities, Manchester Metropolitan University, Cavendish Street, Manchester M15 6BH, UKEnhanced Composites and Structures Centre, School of Aerospace, Transport and Manufacturing, Cranfield University, Bedfordshire MK43 0AL, UKAlginate is a linear biodegradable polysaccharide polymer, which is bio-renewable and widely used for various biomedical applications. For the next generation of medical textiles, alginate nanofibres are desirable for their use in wound dressings that are biocompatible, sustainable, and abundantly available. This study has developed a unique manufacturing process for producing alginate nanofibres with exceptional antimicrobial properties of oregano essential oil (OEO) as a natural antimicrobial agent. OEO with varying degrees of concentration was incorporated in an aqueous alginate solution. Appropriate materials and electrospinning process parameter selection allowed us to manufacture alginate fibres with a range of diameters between 38 and 105 nm. A unique crosslinking process for alginate nanofibres using extended water soaking was developed. Mechanical characterisation using micro-mechanical testing of nonwoven electrospun alginate/oregano composite nanofibres revealed that it was durable. An extensive antimicrobial study was carried out on alginate/oregano composite nanofibres using a range of Gram-positive (methicillin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> (MRSA) and <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>) and Gram-negative bacteria (<i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> and <i>Salmonella enterica</i>), which are common wound and food pathogens. The results indicated that increasing the concentration of OEO from 2 to 3 wt % showed improved antimicrobial activity against all pathogens, and activity was significantly improved against MRSA compared to a non-alginate-based control disk containing OEO. Therefore, our research suggests that all-natural alginate/oregano nanofibre composite textiles offer a new generation of medical textiles for advanced wound dressing technology as well as for food packaging applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/8/2062electrospinningnanofibressodium alginateoregano oilantimicrobial resistance
collection DOAJ
language English
format Article
sources DOAJ
author Hao Lu
Jonathan A. Butler
Nicole S. Britten
Prabhuraj D. Venkatraman
Sameer S. Rahatekar
spellingShingle Hao Lu
Jonathan A. Butler
Nicole S. Britten
Prabhuraj D. Venkatraman
Sameer S. Rahatekar
Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
Nanomaterials
electrospinning
nanofibres
sodium alginate
oregano oil
antimicrobial resistance
author_facet Hao Lu
Jonathan A. Butler
Nicole S. Britten
Prabhuraj D. Venkatraman
Sameer S. Rahatekar
author_sort Hao Lu
title Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
title_short Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
title_full Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
title_fullStr Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
title_full_unstemmed Natural Antimicrobial Nano Composite Fibres Manufactured from a Combination of Alginate and Oregano Essential Oil
title_sort natural antimicrobial nano composite fibres manufactured from a combination of alginate and oregano essential oil
publisher MDPI AG
series Nanomaterials
issn 2079-4991
publishDate 2021-08-01
description Alginate is a linear biodegradable polysaccharide polymer, which is bio-renewable and widely used for various biomedical applications. For the next generation of medical textiles, alginate nanofibres are desirable for their use in wound dressings that are biocompatible, sustainable, and abundantly available. This study has developed a unique manufacturing process for producing alginate nanofibres with exceptional antimicrobial properties of oregano essential oil (OEO) as a natural antimicrobial agent. OEO with varying degrees of concentration was incorporated in an aqueous alginate solution. Appropriate materials and electrospinning process parameter selection allowed us to manufacture alginate fibres with a range of diameters between 38 and 105 nm. A unique crosslinking process for alginate nanofibres using extended water soaking was developed. Mechanical characterisation using micro-mechanical testing of nonwoven electrospun alginate/oregano composite nanofibres revealed that it was durable. An extensive antimicrobial study was carried out on alginate/oregano composite nanofibres using a range of Gram-positive (methicillin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> (MRSA) and <i>Listeria monocytogenes</i>) and Gram-negative bacteria (<i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> and <i>Salmonella enterica</i>), which are common wound and food pathogens. The results indicated that increasing the concentration of OEO from 2 to 3 wt % showed improved antimicrobial activity against all pathogens, and activity was significantly improved against MRSA compared to a non-alginate-based control disk containing OEO. Therefore, our research suggests that all-natural alginate/oregano nanofibre composite textiles offer a new generation of medical textiles for advanced wound dressing technology as well as for food packaging applications.
topic electrospinning
nanofibres
sodium alginate
oregano oil
antimicrobial resistance
url https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/11/8/2062
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