Antibacterial and antibiofilm activities of sodium ibuprofen- and paracetamol-loaded nanofibers

Nanofibers loaded with pharmaceutical agents for various medical purposes have become more important in recent years because of their advantages, such as control on release, gas permeability, high surface area, and lightweight matrices. In the present study, polylactic acid (PLA)-gelatin (Gel) nanofibers were successfully loaded with Ibuprofen-Na/Paracetamol (henceforth Ibu-Na and Par, respectively) by electrospinning. The nanofibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The Ibu-Na/Par content of the nanofibers was determined by using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Their antibacterial activities were tested against Enterococcus faecalis ATCC 29212, Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 25923, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, and Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA01, opportunistic pathogenic bacteria which are frequently associated with infections. Moreover, their antibiofilm activities against P. aeruginosa and E. faecalis were also investigated. The Ibu-Na-containing nanofibers exhibited antibacterial activity against S. aureus, E. coli, and E. faecalis. The inhibition zone diameters of PLA-Gel-Ibu-Na 300 against E. faecalis, S. aureus, and E. coli were calculated to be 23.0 ± 2.1 mm, 18.0 ± 1.5 mm, and 12.0 ± 1.2 mm, respectively. It was found that PLA-Gel-Ibu-Na 300 and PLA-Gel-Par 300 nanofibers’ capacity to show biofilm formation inhibition originated remarkable effects on P. aeruginosa, which were found to be 48 % and 50.4 %, respectively. This study indicated that Ibu-Na/Par-loaded nanofibers are promising materials for wound healing applications.