In situ Preparation of PVA/Schizophyllan-AgNPs Nanofiber as Potential of Wound Healing: Characterization and Cytotoxicity

The use of natural polymers and electrospinning as a new method of wound dressing production is one of the things that can revolutionize the medical world. Due to the importance of wound healing and characteristics such as anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties, it is possible to use natural compounds such as fungi and metabolites derived from them to produce wound dressing. In this study, schizophyllan (SPG) as an extracellular polysaccharide was extracted from Iranian Schizophyllum commune (NCBI MG761830) and then the silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) were produced by the in-situ method in 1.5 % SPG solution. Afterward, they were combined with polyvinyl alcohol 10 % (PVA) polymer to strengthen the fiber structure. We investigated the properties of nanofibers containing PVA/SPG-AgNPs and PVA/SPG20 %. The physicochemical properties of two fibers were investigated by SEM, TEM, FTIR, contact angle, water uptake, nanoparticle release, and biological test (antibacterial, and MTT). The diameter of the nanofiber-containing the AgNPs was about 169 nm and the other nanofiber was about 212 nm. The highest inhibition of the growth of the bacterium by PVA/SPG-AgNPs against E. coli and S. aureus was about 88.34 % and 64.7 %, respectively. The silver ion release from PVA/SPG-AgNPs nanofibers was 21 mu g/ml after fifth day. Both nanofibers had no toxic effect on L929 fibroblast cells.