Biomimetic double-sided polypropylene mesh modified by DOPA and ofloxacin loaded carboxyethyl chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol-polycaprolactone nanofibers for potential hernia repair applications.

Polypropylene (PP) meshes are the most widely used as hernioplasty prostheses. As far as hernia repair is concerned, bacterial contamination and tissue adhesion would be the clinical issues. Moreover, an optimal mesh should assist the healing process of hernia defect and avoid undesired prosthesis displacements. In this present study, the commercial hernia mesh was modified to solve the mentioned problems. Accordingly, a new bi-functional PP mesh with anti-adhesion and antibacterial properties on the front and adhesion properties (reduce undesired displacements) on the backside was prepared. The backside of PP mesh was coated with polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers modified by mussel-inspired L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine (L-DOPA) bioadhesive. The front side was composed of two different nanofibrous mats, including hybrid and two-layered mats with different antibacterial properties, drug release, and biodegradation behavior, which were based on PCL nanofibers and biomacromolecule carboxyethyl-chitosan (CECS)/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibers containing different ofloxacin amounts. The anti-adhesion, antibacterial, and biocompatibility studies were done through in-vitro experiments. The results revealed that DOPA coated PCL/PP/hybrid meshes containing ofloxacin below 20 wt% possessed proper cell viability, AdMSCs adhesion prevention, and excellent antibacterial efficiency. Moreover, DOPA modifications not only enhanced the surface properties of the PP mesh but also improved cell adhesion, spreading, and proliferation.

Multilayer nanofibrous patch comprising chamomile loaded carboxyethyl chitosan/poly(vinyl alcohol) and polycaprolactone as a potential wound dressing.

Electrospun multilayer nanofibrous patches with a new design were developed using poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) and chamomile loaded carboxyethyl chitosan (CECS) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) in which chamomile extract was used as an antioxidant/antibacterial agent. To prepare an aqueous solution (water as solvent) from chitosan and PVA along with the herbal extract, chitosan was modified to CECS by Michael reaction and proved by 1H NMR and FTIR. Multilayer patches composed of a hydrophilic chamomile loaded CECS/PVA nanofibrous layer to be in contact with the wound and a hydrophobic PCL nanofibrous layer to provide the strength were electrospun. Hybrid nanofibers made of PCL and chamomile/CECS/PVA were electrospun as cohesion promoter between the hydrophilic and hydrophobic layers due to their different chemical nature and weak cohesion. SEM showed continuous, smooth, and bead-free nanofibers with excellent compatibility between polymers and chamomile. The mats exhibited satisfactory tensile strength (8.2-16.03 MPa), and antioxidant characteristics (6.60-38.01%). Furthermore, 15, 20, and 30 wt% chamomile loaded mats possessed high antibacterial efficiency, which enhanced with increasing chamomile content. The results demonstrated that chamomile sustained-release significantly controlled by Fickian-Diffusion mechanism. MTT assay revealed proper cell viability for all mats except one contained 30 wt% chamomile.