Fabrication and characterization of gellan gum films incorporating nanostructured titanium dioxide for wound dressing applications

Abstract

Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanostructures, which are nanoparticles, nanorods and nanotubes, were successfully synthesised by using the hydrothermal method. These TiO2 nanostructures were incorporated into gellan gum (GG) film. Good film was produced by using 1.00 g GG with a 5 mM CaCl2 cross-linker and 50% w/w glycerol as a plasticiser dried at 50 °C for 24 h. GG incorporating TiO2 nanoparticles (GG+TiO2-NPs), nanorods (GG+TiO2-NRs) and nanotubes (GG+TiO2-NTs) was produced via the evaporative casting method. GG+TiO2-NTs film shows the best mechanical properties, a high swelling ability and moderate water vapour transmission rates attributed to the chemical interaction between GG and TiO2 nanotubes. GG+TiO2-NTs film also shows antibacterial properties with 10 ± 0.38 mm, 12 ± 0.06 mm, 11 ± 0.06 mm and 10 ± 0.12 mm inhibition zone was obtained against Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus, Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which are as good as control samples (penicillin).