Electrospun Bioactive Wound Dressing containing Phospholipid stabilized Nanodispersions of a Birch Bark Dry Extract
Prof. Dr. R . Daniels1), University Tuebingen/Germany
People involved
Francis-Kamau Mwiiri, M.Sc. (PhD fellow sponsored by the PRC) - University of Tuebingen, Germany (francis-kamau.mwiiri@uni-tuebingen.de)
Abstract
The human skin serves as a barrier between the body and the environment. Therefore, it is prone to microbial, thermal, mechanical, and chemical threats which can cause acute or chronic wounds. Triterpenes from the outer bark of birch are known for various pharmacological effects including enhanced wound healing.1)2) Polymeric nanofibers made from biodegradable and biocompatible synthetic or natural polymers have been utilized to develop drug delivery systems to treat various diseases, and one of the potential areas to use them is medicated wound dressing.3)4) Hence, our main aim in this work is to use birch bark dry extract which has been recently clinically proved to speed up wound healing and develop a bioactive nanofiber wound dressing. Sub-micron oil-in-water (o/w) emulsions containing the active substance birch bark dry extract will first be produced via a high-pressure homogenization process and lecithin-based phospholipids as emulsifiers. Consequently, the emulsions will be blended with commercially available biodegradable and biocompatible polymers to form nanofibers intended for wound therapy using electrospinning technology. The influence of preparation processes and emulsion compositions (polymer/birch bark dry extract/phospholipid/sunflower oil) towards the drug release behavior of the scaffolds, together with their structural morphology as well as surface and thermal properties will be evaluated.5)6)7)
The main aim of this study is to develop a bioactive wound dressing by incorporating a sub-micron dispersion of phospholipid-stabilized birch bark dry extract into polymeric sub-micron fibers through electrospinning for wound therapy.
Benefit for the community
Current research studies reveal that birch cork extract accelerate wound healing. The developed nanopolymer-based birch bark dry extract wound dressing is expected to have a controlled drug release for about 5 days. This would be very beneficial especially for patients with chronic wounds like those of diabetic ulcers or serious burns whether in hospitals or at home leading to an efficient wound therapy with less frequent dressing changes and, hence, a better patient adherence.
Visit the supervisors lab
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PLoS ONE 9, e86147
PubMed |
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MDPI |
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MDPI |
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MDPI |