Drug loaded composite oxidized pectin and gelatin networks for accelerated wound healing.

Biocomposite interactive wound dressings have been designed and fabricated using oxidized pectin (OP), gelatin and nonwoven cotton fabric. Due to their inherent virtues of antimicrobial activity and cytocompatibility, these composite structures are capable of redirecting the healing cascade and influencing cell attachment and proliferation. A novel in situ reduction process has been followed to synthesize oxidized pectin-gelatin-nanosilver (OP-Gel-NS) flower like nanohydrocolloids. This encapsulation technology controls the diffusion and permeation of nanosilver into the surrounding biological tissues. Ciprofloxacin hydrochloride has also been incorporated into the OP-Gel matrix to produce OP-Gel-Cipro dressings. While OP-Gel-NS dressings exhibited 100% antimicrobial activity at extremely low loadings of 3.75µg/cm(2), OP-Gel-Cipro dressings were highly antimicrobial at 1% drug loading. While NIH3T3 mouse fibroblasts proliferated remarkably well when cultured with OP-Gel and OP-Gel-Cipro dressings, OP-Gel-NS hindered cell growth and Bactigras(®) induced complete lysis. Full thickness excisional wounds were created on C57BL/6J mice and the wound healing potential of the OP-Gel-NS dressings led to accelerated healing within 12days, while OP-Gel-Cipro dressings healed wounds at a rate similar to that of Bactigras(®). Histological examination revealed that OP-Gel-NS and OP-Gel-Cipro treatment led to organized collagen deposition, neovascularization and nuclei migration, unlike Bactigras(®). Therefore, the OP-Gel-NS and OP-Gel-Cipro biocomposite dressings exhibiting good hydrophilicity, sustained antimicrobial nature, promote cell growth and proliferation, and lead to rapid healing, can be considered viable candidates for effective management.

Composite wound dressings of pectin and gelatin with aloe vera and curcumin as bioactive agents.

Aloe vera and curcumin loaded oxidized pectin-gelatin (OP-Gel) matrices were used as antimicrobial finishes on nonwoven cotton fabrics to produce composite wound care devices. The drug release characteristics of the biocomposite dressings indicated that curcumin is released through a biphasic mechanism - erosion of the polymeric matrix, followed by diffusion, while aloe vera is released upon leaching of the polymeric matrix. A 50/50 composition of aloe vera/curcumin was used to fabricate OP-Gel-Aloe Curcumin dressings. However, contrary to our expectations, OP-Gel-Aloe Curcumin dressings exhibited lesser antimicrobial activity compared to OP-Gel-Aloe and OP-Gel-Curcumin dressings. The cytocompatibility of the fabricated dressings was evaluated using NIH3T3 mouse fibroblast cells. OP-Gel-Aloe treated fibroblasts had the highest viability, with the matrices providing a substrate for good cell attachment and proliferation. On the other hand, OP-Gel-Curcumin and OP-Gel-Aloe Curcumin seemed to have induced apoptosis in NIH3T3 cells. In vivo wound healing analysis was carried out using an excisional splint wound model on C57BL/6J mice. OP-Gel-Aloe treated wounds exhibited very rapid healing with 80% of the wound healing in just 8 days. Furthermore, aloe vera exerted a strong anti-inflammatory effect and prominent scar prevention. Histological examination revealed that an ordered collagen formation and neovascularization could be observed along with migration of nuclei. Therefore, OP-Gel-Aloe biocomposite dressings are proposed as viable materials for effective wound management.

Facile and green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using oxidized pectin.

In the current work, an alternative route for facile synthesis of nanosilver is reported. Oxidized pectin has been used as the reducing agent as well as the stabilizing agent, resulting in the formation of oxidized pectin-nanosilver (OP-NS) core sheath nanohydrogels. The effect of reaction parameters on the synthesized nanoparticles is investigated. The structural and morphological features have been analyzed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) respectively. The crystal size of the synthesized nanosilver was calculated to be 28.76 nm. While the average size of the core sheath structure varied from 289 nm to 540 nm, the size of the silver nanoparticle entities at the core varied from 100 nm to 180 nm, with variation in reaction time. From the morphological examination, it could be seen that flower like nanostructures are formed with nanosilver in the core surrounded by a polymeric halo.

Preparation and characterization of in-situ crosslinked pectin-gelatin hydrogels.

Crosslinked hydrogels were developed by in-situ reaction of periodate oxidized pectin (OP) and gelatin. The reaction takes place through the formation of Schiff bases between aldehyde groups of OP and amino groups of gelatin. The effect of various process parameters such as reaction time, reaction temperature, pH of the reaction and composition on the efficacy of the crosslinking was investigated. Field emission scanning electron micrsocopy (FESEM) revealed that homogenous, single phase systems are obtained after the crosslinking of OP and gelatin. The swelling characteristics of the hydrogels were monitored. The equilibrium swelling varies in the range of 195-324% with a variation in the gelatin content (10-40%). Glycerol, when used as a plasticizer, improved the flexibility and the handling characteristics of the crosslinked hydrogels. Plasticized films retained good tensile strengths in the range of 19-48 MPa. By proper selection of the reaction conditions, the efficiency of crosslinking can be controlled to obtain the optimum results.

Functionalization of pectin by periodate oxidation.

High methoxy citrus pectin was oxidized by periodic acid to prepare a dialdehyde functionalized material. The effect of various reaction conditions, viz., reaction time, reaction temperature, pH of the medium, periodic acid concentration and solvent composition on the oxidation process was investigated. With an increase in the reaction time, the aldehyde content increased. However, the intrinsic viscosity of the system decreased indicating that degradation takes place simultaneously with oxidation. The amount of aldehyde generated also increased with an increase in reaction temperature and the concentration of periodic acid. Due to the polyanionic behaviour of pectin, greater aldehyde contents were obtained at lower pH. Keeping all other reaction conditions constant, greater aldehyde contents were obtained in water-ethanol system than in pure aqueous medium. Increase in the ethanol content increased the amount of aldehyde generated. FTIR spectra of oxidized pectin systems show a carbonyl peak at 1734 cm(-1). They further reveal that partial ionisation of-COOH groups takes place leading to a peak at 1614 cm(-1).