A major component of recent study into modern wound dressings has been the production of materials that can mimic biofunctions in the wound healing process. By electrospinning nanofiber mats from biomaterials such as collagen, researchers have synthesized materials that mimic morphology and components of the extracellular matrix. However, these collagen dressings are not readily degradable, are not always antibacterial, and are expensive to produce. By using polycaprolactone (PCL), a biodegradable polyester, and chitosan, an antibacterial biomacromolecule, the electrospun nanofibers developed would ideally be biodegradable, antibacterial, inexpensive, and would promote rapid wound healing.<br/><br/>This project has focused on the synthesis of a novel biomimetic polycaprolactone (bPCL). This bPCL was prepared by reacting carboxylic-acid-modified caprolactone with amines to attach molecules that mimic the amino acids naturally occurring in collagen, creating monomers that were polymerized for study. Additionally, electrospinning protocols for PCL/chitosan solutions were established through electrospinning trials. These protocols were applied to bPCL/chitosan solutions to produce nanofiber scaffolds. These fiber mats were analyzed via degradation and<i> in vitro </i>assays to determine if they were biomimetic and degradable as anticipated. In the future, by making bPCL inherently antibacterial, fiber mats could be created without chitosan, opening the possibility of new solvent systems for electrospinning. This could potentially impact nanofiber degradation rates as well.

Developing a novel degradable collagen mimic for modern wound dressings

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