Halochromic composite nanofibrous mat for wound healing monitoring

Abstract

This study was focused on the development and characterization of a wound dressing for pH monitoring based on a sodium alginate (SA) and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) nanofibrous mat including anthocyanins extracted from black carrot (BC). The pH-sensitive mat was prepared through the electrospinning method. The crosslinking of the nanofibrous mat was carried out using glutaraldehyde (GA). The functionalized PVA/SA/BC nanofibrous mat was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). The colors of the nanofibrous mat resulting from pH changes were evaluated using a digital camera. The images were processed using Adobe Photoshop software, CS5 version, and analyzed through RGB and CIELAB. When the dried nanofibrous mat with a light pink color was immersed in buffer solutions at different pHs, the color of the nanofibrous mat ranged from red (in acidic medium) to blue (in neutral medium) and then to black-green (in basic medium). The response time and temperature stability of the nanofibrous mat were also investigated. It was concluded that the developed pH-sensing composite nanofibrous mat could be successfully used as wound dressing for monitoring healing.