Emerging Biomedical Applications of Nano-Chitins and Nano-Chitosans Obtained via Advanced Eco-Friendly Technologies from Marine Resources

The present review article is intended to direct attention to the technological advances made in the 2010–2014 quinquennium for the isolation and manufacture of nanofibrillar chitin and chitosan. Otherwise called nanocrystals or whiskers, n-chitin and n-chitosan are obtained either by mechanical chitin disassembly and fibrillation optionally assisted by sonication, or by e-spinning of solutions of polysaccharides often accompanied by poly(ethylene oxide) or poly(caprolactone). The biomedical areas where n-chitin may find applications include hemostasis and wound healing, regeneration of tissues such as joints and bones, cell culture, antimicrobial agents, and dermal protection. The biomedical applications of n-chitosan include epithelial tissue regeneration, bone and dental tissue regeneration, as well as protection against bacteria, fungi and viruses. It has been found that the nano size enhances the performances of chitins and chitosans in all cases considered, with no exceptions. Biotechnological approaches will boost the applications of the said safe, eco-friendly and benign nanomaterials not only in these fields, but also for biosensors and in targeted drug delivery areas.     

A Study of Combining Elastin in the Chitosan Electrospinning to Increase the Mechanical Strength and Bioactivity

While electrospun chitosan membranes modified to retain nanofibrous morphology have shown promise for use in guided bone regeneration applications in in vitro and in vivo studies, their mechanical tear strengths are lower than commercial collagen membranes. Elastin, a natural component of the extracellular matrix, is a protein with extensive elastic property. This work examined the incorporation of elastin into electrospun chitosan membranes to improve their mechanical tear strengths and to further mimic the native extracellular composition for guided bone regeneration (GBR) applications. In this work, hydrolyzed elastin (ES12, Elastin Products Company, USA) was added to a chitosan spinning solution from 0 to 4 wt% of chitosan. The chitosan–elastin (CE) membranes were examined for fiber morphology using SEM, hydrophobicity using water contact angle measurements, the mechanical tear strength under simulated surgical tacking, and compositions using Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and post-spinning protein extraction. In vitro experiments were conducted to evaluate the degradation in a lysozyme solution based on the mass loss and growth of fibroblastic cells. Chitosan membranes with elastin showed significantly thicker fiber diameters, lower water contact angles, up to 33% faster degradation rates, and up to seven times higher mechanical strengths than the chitosan membrane. The FTIR spectra showed stronger amide peaks at 1535 cm⁻¹ and 1655 cm⁻¹ in membranes with higher concentrated elastin, indicating the incorporation of elastin into electrospun fibers. The bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay demonstrated an increase in protein concentration in proportion to the amount of elastin added to the CE membranes. In addition, all the CE membranes showed in vitro biocompatibility with the fibroblasts.     

Biomedical exploitation of chitin and chitosan via mechano-chemical disassembly, electrospinning, dissolution in imidazolium ionic liquids, and supercritical drying

Recently developed technology permits to optimize simultaneously surface area, porosity, density, rigidity and surface morphology of chitin-derived materials of biomedical interest. Safe and ecofriendly disassembly of chitin has superseded the dangerous acid hydrolysis and provides higher yields and scaling-up possibilities: the chitosan nanofibrils are finding applications in reinforced bone scaffolds and composite dressings for dermal wounds. Electrospun chitosan nanofibers, in the form of biocompatible thin mats and non-wovens, are being actively studied: composites of gelatin + chitosan + polyurethane have been proposed for cardiac valves and for nerve conduits; fibers are also manufactured from electrospun particles that self-assemble during subsequent freeze-drying. Ionic liquids (salts of alkylated imidazolium) are suitable as non-aqueous solvents that permit desirable reactions to occur for drug delivery purposes. Gel drying with supercritical CO(2) leads to structures most similar to the extracellular matrix, even when the chitosan is crosslinked, or in combination with metal oxides of interest in orthopedics.     

静电纺再生大腹圆蛛牵引丝后处理的性能

探讨以六氟异丙醇(HFIP)为溶剂时,静电纺大腹园蛛牵引丝纤维(AVSHF)纤维毡经去离子水处理后的尺寸及性能变化.结果表明,静电纺再生大腹园蛛牵引丝纤维遇水则发生严重的收缩(收缩率45％),对其用99％的乙醇处理后,在水中的形态稳定性得到了改善(收缩率10％),处理后纤维的分子构象有明显β-折叠结构转化的趋势,纤维的结晶度以及断裂强度分别较原样提高了5.5％和23％.     

静电纺丝在食品活性包装中的应用

静电纺丝是一种利用高压静电场生产纤维的技术,所生产的纳米纤维具有高比表面积和高孔隙率等特点,可以实现对活性物质的包埋以及控制释放,并有效保护其生物活性,在活性包装领域有巨大的应用前景。目前已开发出多种具有不同功能的静电纺丝纳米纤维活性包装材料,且被证明具备应用于果蔬、肉类以及烘焙食品包装中的可行性。本文综述了静电纺丝的原理、分类、影响因素及其在食品活性包装方面的应用,并对其应用前景做了分析和展望,可以为静电纺丝技术在食品包装领域的深入研究提供参考。     

静电纺丝素纳米纤维在修复医学中的应用

静电纺丝是目前制备纳米纤维的一种非常有效的方法之一.由于该技术具有装置简单、价廉、获得的纳米纤维和细胞外基质的结构非常相似,因此,越来越受到研究者的关注.丝素蛋白是一种天然的、可降解、低免疫原性的结构蛋白,在生物材料中具有广泛的应用前景.本文综述了静电纺纳米丝素在修复医学中的研究进展,并对以后的发展趋势提出了想法.     

Fabrication of Gelatin-Based Electrospun Composite Fibers for Anti-Bacterial Properties and Protein Adsorption

A major goal of biomimetics is the development of chemical compositions and structures that simulate the extracellular matrix. In this study, gelatin-based electrospun composite fibrous membranes were prepared by electrospinning to generate bone scaffold materials. The gelatin-based multicomponent composite fibers were fabricated using co-electrospinning, and the composite fibers of chitosan (CS), gelatin (Gel), hydroxyapatite (HA), and graphene oxide (GO) were successfully fabricated for multi-function characteristics of biomimetic scaffolds. The effect of component concentration on composite fiber morphology, antibacterial properties, and protein adsorption were investigated. Composite fibers exhibited effective antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The study observed that the composite fibers have higher adsorption capacities of bovine serum albumin (BSA) at pH 5.32–6.00 than at pH 3.90–4.50 or 7.35. The protein adsorption on the surface of the composite fiber increased as the initial BSA concentration increased. The surface of the composite reached adsorption equilibrium at 20 min. These results have specific applications for the development of bone scaffold materials, and broad implications in the field of tissue engineering.     

聚碳酸酯/TiO2杂化超细纤维的制备及其表征

应用静电纺丝法制备出聚碳酸酯/TiO2及其杂化细纤维非织造布,采用扫描电子显微镜、透射电子显微镜、红外光谱等方法探讨了其微观形貌和结构,验证了不同金属离子掺杂聚碳酸酯/TiO2纤维膜抗菌性能的差异.结果表明,Cu2+或Ag+掺杂可提高电纺纤维的规整度,在尺寸均匀性和珠状物减少方面较未掺杂的有所改善,且在二者协同作用时尤为明显.同时Cu2+和(或)Ag+的添加实现了接触型抗菌剂对光感应抗菌剂TiO2的修饰,使得纤维膜在无光催化条件下具有一定抗菌效果.