Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA)/ Polycaprolactone (PCL) Nanofibers for Wound Dressing

Here, for the first time, a biohybrid nanofibrous wound dressing is developed based on bovine serum albumin (BSA) incorporated polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers. The biohybrid nanofibers containing 1 and 3 wt.% BSA are beadles and uniform in terms of diameter. The nanofiber diameter notably grows at the highest BSA concentration. While the neat PCL nanofibers are 140-160 nm in diameter, the 3 wt.% BSA/PCL nanofibers’ diameter rises to 400-500 nm. The nanofibrous mats are highly porous and their porosity is as large as 90%. ATR-FTIR analysis witnesses the presence of protein and the intensity of the amide characteristic peaks rises proportional to the BSA concentration. Moreover, EDX mapping verifies the homogenous distribution of protein across the biohybrid nanofibrous mats. With respect to mechanical properties, the biohybrid nanofibers show a significantly superior elastic modulus and also elongation when compared with the neat PCL nanofibers. The elastic modulus and displacement at break for the 3 wt.% BSA/PCL nanofibers are 300% and 58%, respectively, larger than those for the neat PCL nanofibers. Last but not least, the surface of the biohybrid nanofibers immersed into simulated body fluid (SBF) is covered by a biomineral layer, implying proper bioactivity of them. Such optimum structural, mechanical and biological characteristics are favorable for a wound dressing application.