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In this study, a dental membrane scaffold was fabricated using a 3D printing technique, and the antimicrobial effect of pomegranate seed and peel extract were investigated. For the production of the dental membrane scaffold, a combination of polyvinyl alcohol, starch, and pomegranate seed and peel extracts was used. The aim of the scaffold was to cover the damaged area and aid in the healing process. This can be achieved due to the high antimicrobial and antioxidant content of pomegranate seed and peel extracts (PPE: PSE). Moreover, the addition of starch and PPE: PSE improved the biocompatibility of the scaffold, and their biocompatibility was tested using human gingival fibroblast (HGF) cells. The addition of PPE: PSE into the scaffolds resulted in a significant antimicrobial effect on S. aureus and E. faecalis bacteria. Moreover, different concentrations of starch (1%, 2%, 3% w/v) and pomegranate peel and seed extract (3%, 5%, 7%, 9%, and 11% PE v/v) were analyzed to obtain the ideal dental membrane structure. The optimum starch concentration was chosen as 2% w/v due to it giving the scaffold the highest mechanical tensile strength (23.8607 ± 4.0796 MPa). The pore sizes of each scaffold were studied by SEM analysis, and pore sizes were arranged between 155.86 and 280.96 μm without any plugging problems. Pomegranate seed and peel extracts were obtained by applying the standard extraction method. High-performance liquid chromatography was performed using the diode-array detection (HPLC-DAD) technique to analyze the phenolic content of the pomegranate seed and peel extracts. Two phenolic components of the pomegranate seed and peel extracts were investigated in the following amounts: fumaric acid (17.56 μg analyte/mg extract) and quinic acid (18.79 μg analyte/mg extract) in pomegranate seed extract and fumaric acid (26.95 μg analyte/mg extract) and quinic acid (33.79 μg analyte/mg extract) in pomegranate peel extract.

Skin diseases are commonly treated with antihistamines, antibiotics, laser therapy, topical medications, local vitamins, or steroids. Since conventional treatments for wound healing (skin allografts, amnion, xenografts, etc.) have disadvantages such as antigenicity of the donor tissue, risk of infection, or lack of basement membrane, skin tissue engineering has become a popular new approach. The current study presents the design and fabrication of a new wound-dressing material by the addition of Juglone (5-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) to a 25% Polycaprolactone (PCL) scaffold. Juglone (J) is a significant allelochemical found in walnut trees and, in this study is used as a bioactive material. The effects of different amounts of J (1.25, 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 10 mg) on the biocompatibility, mechanical, chemical, thermal, morphological, and antimicrobial properties of the 3D-printed 25% PCL scaffolds were investigated. The addition of J increased the pore diameter of the 25% PCL scaffold. The maximum pore size (290.72 ± 14 µm) was observed for the highest amount of J (10 mg). The biocompatibility tests on the scaffolds demonstrated biocompatible behavior from the first day of incubation, the 25% PCL/7.5 J scaffold having the highest viability value (118%) among all of the J-loaded scaffolds. Drug release of J into phosphate buffered saline (PBS) at pH 7.4 showed that J was completely released from all 25% PCL/J scaffolds within 7 days of incubation.

Juglone (5-hydroxy-1,4-naphthoquinone) (J) is a naphthoquinone structured allelochemical that is mostly found in the roots, leaves, nut-hulls, bark, and wood of walnut (Juglans regia). In this study, the biocompatibility, mechanical, thermal, chemical, morphological, and antimicrobial properties of the poly(lactic acid) (PLA) (w/v)/J (10, 20, 30 mg) electrospun scaffolds were investigated. Based on the results of the study, it was shown that juglone addition increased the antimicrobial properties of the scaffolds against the Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) and Escherichia coli (E. coli), compared to the neat PLA film after 24 h of contact time. According to the tensile test results, the addition of J made the scaffolds more flexible but decreased the mechanical strength. The cytotoxicity properties of the J-added scaffolds demonstrated a toxic behavior on the first day of incubation. However, with an increase in the J ratio, the fibroblast cell metabolic activity increased for all incubation periods.

In this research, polyvinyl-alcohol (PVA)/gelatin (GEL)/propolis (Ps) biocompatible nanofiber patches were fabricated via electrospinning technique. The controlled release of Propolis, surface wettability behaviors, antimicrobial activities against the S. aureus and P. aeruginosa, and biocompatibility properties with the mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) were investigated in detail. By adding 0.5, 1, and 3 wt.% GEL into the 13 wt.% PVA, the morphological and mechanical results suggested that 13 wt.% PVA/0.5 wt.% GEL patch can be an ideal matrix for 3 and 5 wt.% propolis addition. Morphological results revealed that the diameters of the electrospun nanofiber patches were increased with GEL (from 290 nm to 400 nm) and Ps addition and crosslinking process cause the formation of thicker nanofibers. The tensile strength and elongation at break enhancement were also determined for 13 wt.% PVA/0.5 wt.% GEL/3 wt.% Ps patch. Propolis was released quickly in the first hour and arrived at a plateau. Cell culture and contact angle results confirmed that the 3 wt.% addition of propolis reinforced mesenchymal stem cell proliferation and wettability properties of the patches. The antimicrobial activity demonstrated that propolis loaded patches had antibacterial activity against the S. aureus, but for P. aeruginosa, more studies should be performed.

In this study, the main aim was to fabricate propolis (Ps)-containing wound dressing patches using 3D printing technology. Different combinations and structures of propolis (Ps)-incorporated sodium alginate (SA) scaffolds were developed. The morphological studies showed that the porosity of developed scaffolds was optimized when 20% (v/v) of Ps was added to the solution. The pore sizes decreased by increasing Ps concentration up to a certain level due to its adhesive properties. The mechanical, swelling-degradation (weight loss) behaviors, and Ps release kinetics were highlighted for the scaffold stability. An antimicrobial assay was employed to test and screen antimicrobial behavior of Ps against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus strains. The results show that the Ps-added scaffolds have an excellent antibacterial activity because of Ps compounds. An in vitro cytotoxicity test was also applied on the scaffold by using the extract method on the human dermal fibroblasts (HFFF2) cell line. The 3D-printed SA–Ps scaffolds are very useful structures for wound dressing applications.