Electrospun herbal extract-loaded poly (3-hydroxy butyric acid-co-3-hydroxy valeric acid) nanofiber mats as potential wound dressing materials

Electrospun nanofiber mats have aroused intensive attraction for the design and development of innovative wound dressing materials, due to their high specific surface area and porosity, great air permeability, and excellent extracellular matrix (ECM) imitativeness. In this study, piezoelectric poly (3-hydroxy butyric acid-co-3-hydroxy valeric acid) (PHBV) was electrospun into nanofibers, and two different concentrations of herbal extract, Salvia miltiorrhiza Bunge-Radix Puerariae herbal compound (SRHC), were loaded into PHBV nanofibers during the electrospinning process for constructing novel wound dressings with multiple functions. All the generated PHBV mats loading with or without SRHC were observed to be constructed with randomly oriented nanofibers with the diameters ranging from 200 nm to 900 nm, and the mean fiber diameter and mean pore size presented an increased trend with the addition of SRHC. The average fiber diameter and mean pore size of PHBV nanofiber mat loading with 5 % SRHC was determined to be 649.6±242.1 nm and 2.1±0.4 μm, respectively. The addition of SRHC was found to significantly enhance the surface hydrophilicity of as-generated PHBV nanofiber mats that was changed to be hydrophilic from hydrophobic, while maintain the high mechanical properties and piezoelectric properties originated from the main polymer, i.e., PHBV. Importantly, all the nanofiber mats exhibited great biological properties, and the nanofiber mat with high SRHC content was demonstrated to significantly improve the anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory performances, as well as promote the adhesion and proliferation of human dermal fibroblasts. The present studies demonstrated pronounced advantages of SRHC-PHBV-5 % nanofiber mats to be used as potential wound dressing materials for the wound treatment.