Preparation and characterization of electrospun nanofiber membrane from polyvinyl alcohol loaded with Glycyrrhiza glabra extract

Abstract

This study was designed to form an electrospun nanofiber membrane generated from different ratio of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) and Glycyrrhiza glabra (licorice) extract. The electrospinning process was used to fabricate the nanofiber membrane using maximum amount of licorice extract solution. 90% licorice extract solution was successfully electrospun to fabricate nano membrane with 10% PVA solution. Antibacterial, cytotoxicity, scanning electron microscope (SEM) test were performed on resulted sample. The outstanding performance against Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) by forming inhibition zone of 15 mm was observed. On the vero cell line, cell cytotoxicity was found, with only a few numbers of cells (less than 5%) surviving after exposure to the material. SEM investigation reveals fiber production with a diameter of (245.54 ± 55.19) nm on average. Moreover, Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and moisture management test were performed. FT-IR spectra analysis confirmed the presence of licorice components in the membrane. Moisture analysis proved it as a better absorbing material. Since the fabricated membrane were proven to have bacteriostatic activity, it can be employed as wound healing.