Antibacterial activity of polymeric nanofiber membranes impregnated with Texas sour orange juice

The antibacterial activity of Nylon 6 nanofiber membranes and commercial gauze pads dipped in Texas sour orange juice were evaluated. The Nylon 6 nanofiber mats were developed using a centrifugal spinning technique. The resultant mats were composed of fibers with average diameter of 209 nm, while the average fiber diameter of the commercial gauze pad was 8.73 mu m. The dipping solution was composed of 100% Texas sour orange juice. The samples were immersed in the solution for 5 min. The antibacterial activity against gram-positive, (Staphylococcus aureus) and gram-negative (Escherichia coli and Salmonella sp.) bacteria were evaluated after one day of culture by measuring the inhibition zones. The bacterial tests demonstrated that the addition of the citrus juice to nanofiber membrane increases the degree of inhibition zones from 5.5 mm to 18.5 mm, however; in case of coated gauze pad samples a maximum inhibition zone up to 16 min was observed. Cell growth was inhibited in the nanofiber membranes, indicating that the nanofiber mats are amenable to be used as easy to remove wound dressings. These results show promising applications in wound care, especially given that the results were achieved in the absence of a sterilization process.