Electrospinning of poly(vinyl pyrrolidone)–iodine complex and poly(ethylene oxide)/poly(vinyl pyrrolidone)–iodine complex – a prospective route to antimicrobial wound dressing materials

New nanofibers containing poly(vinyl pyrrolidone)–iodine complex (PVP–iodine) were obtained by electrospinning in order to prepare materials suitable for wound dressings. Different approaches were used: a one-step method based on electrospinning of PVP–iodine or poly(ethylene oxide)/PVP–iodine solutions and a three-step method based on electrospinning of PVP or poly(ethylene oxide)/PVP mixed solutions followed by photo-mediated crosslinking of the obtained nanofibers and subsequent complexation with iodine. The average diameters of the fibers were in the range 150–470 nm depending on the composition and on the applied field strength (AFS) and increased with increasing the amount of PEO in the spinning solutions. Higher AFS resulted in greater fiber diameter and in size distribution broadening. Photo-mediated crosslinking in the presence of 4,4′-diazidostilbene-2,2′-disulfonic acid disodium salt successfully stabilized the electrospun PVP and PEO/PVP nanofibers against water and water vapor.