Fabrication of Chitosan-Polyethylene Oxide Electrospun Nanofibrous Mats Containing Green Tea Extract

Novel electrospun nanofibrous CS-PEO nerve conduits containing 0, 2.5, and 5 % of green tea methanolic extract were developed and characterized by FE-SEM, FT-IR, TGA/DSC as well as tensile strength analysis. The FE-SEM images revealed that all of the nanofibers had an average diameter of ∼80nm. The swelling degree was decreased by increasing the GT amount from 2.5 to 5 %, and this might be attributed to the enhanced interactions of NH2, C(O)NH2, and OH groups of chitosan and PEO polymers with the OH groups of GT leading to a less hydrophilic mat surface, thus reducing the attraction by the aqueous medium. Moreover, the swelling was at its highest in acidic medium; however, it was decreased in the neutral environment and had the least value within the alkaline medium. The CS-PEO-5 % GT exhibited the highest antibacterial activity among three samples examined against both S. aureus and E. coli microorganisms. The CS-PEO-5 % GT was proved to be a very suitable candidate to be used as a nerve conduit due to its improved tensile and antibacterial activities