Polyvinyl Alcohol (PVA)–Azadirachta indica (Neem) Nanofibrous Mat for Biomedical Application: Formation and Characterization

• Published in: Journal of polymers and the environment Vol. 27; no. 12; pp. 2933 - 2942
• Main Authors: Ali, Ayub, Shahid, Md. Abdus
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Springer US 01-12-2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: AGAR; Antibacterial activity; Azadirachta indica; BACTERIA; BINDING ENERGY; Biocompatibility; Biomedical materials; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; Constituents; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Engineering/Biotechnology; EXTRACTION; FIBERS; Fourier analysis; FOURIER TRANSFORM SPECTROMETERS; Fourier transforms; Gravimetric analysis; HERBS; HUMIDITY; Industrial Chemistry/Chemical Engineering; Infrared analysis; INFRARED SPECTRA; Infrared spectroscopy; Management; MATERIALS SCIENCE; Moisture; NANOFIBERS; Neem; Original Paper; Polymer Sciences; Polyvinyl alcohol; PVA; SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY; Spectrum analysis; THERMAL GRAVIMETRIC ANALYSIS; Thermodynamic properties; Neem extract; Nanofibrous mat; Bacterial resistance; Electrospininning
• ISSN: 1566-2543; 1572-8919
• DOI: 10.1007/s10924-019-01587-9

The present study provides credence to the formation of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)–
Azadirachta indica
(neem) nanofibrous mat (PNNM) under optimum processing conditions of electrospinning technique from a mixer of PVA and neem extract to utilize the inherent medicinal properties of this herb for biomedical application. The bonding behavior, orientation of fibers, thermal behavior, and moisture management properties were evaluated by Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) and moisture management tester (MMT) reports respectively. The antibacterial activity of the developed sample at the maximum mixing ratio of neem extract (80%) was tested against Gram-positive (
S. aureus
) bacteria using agar disc diffusion method. The results reveal that the prepared nanofibrous mat exhibited better thermal and moisture management properties in comparison with PVA nanofiber alone. The formation of smooth fibers was confirmed by SEM images having average diameter of 185 nm under 5k, 10k and 15k magnifications. The characteristic peaks of PVA and neem constituents in FTIR spectra of the developed mat confirmed the presence of both components. Bacterial resistance was reached up to 20 mm due to the antibacterial constituents of neem extract. Thus the developed mat could be used as a biocompatible and bio based in biomedical applications.
Graphic Abstract