Lawsone-encapsulated chitosan/polyethylene oxide nanofibrous mat as a potential antibacterial biobased wound dressing

Biodegradable and absorptive wound dresses with antibacterial activity are in demand to accelerate wound healing along with eliminating bacterial infection. Plant-derived naphthoquinones compounds such as lawsone have shown sustained antibacterial functions to avoid development of bacterial resistance by reducing pH or attaching to bacterial proteins. Here the nanofibrous mats based on chitosan/polyethylene oxide (PEO) fibers containing various concentrations of lawsone (0, 1, 3, 7, 10% wt.) were fabricated by electrospinning for potential applications as wound dressing materials. The results exhibited that the chitosan/PEO/Lawsone nanofibers possess antibacterial activity toward Gram-negative and -positive bacteria. Surprisingly, the addition of lawsone in the proper amount into chitosan/PEO nanofibers not only introduced an antithetical property but also reduced the platform's cytotoxicity, promoting cell viability of normal human fibroblast cells. Accordingly, the achieved data suggest the potential application of biocompatible nanofibrous mats as an antibacterial wound dressing material.