Citrate-modified maghemite enhanced binding of chitosan coating on cellulose porous membranes for potential application as wound dressing

To fabricate ideal wound dressings without involvement of chemical processes is attracting the interest in clinical requirements. Nano-maghemite-incorporated chitosan-coated cellulose porous membranes were prepared and evaluated in terms of those critical requirements as wound dressings. The composite membranes were characterized using elemental analysis, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). In addition, tensile strength, transparence, water absorption, water retention, water vapor transmission rate, adsorption of BSA, and antibacterial properties were thoroughly investigated. Incorporation of citrate-modified nano-maghemite strengthened the binding of chitosan onto cellulose membranes thus omitted the any subsequent crosslinking processes between chitosan and cellulose. Moreover, the incorporation enhanced the tensile strength and the water absorption and water retention capacity of the membrane. Chitosan was tightly coated on cellulose membranes without blocking the pores. The water vapor transmission rate was determined and exhibited suitable for ideal wound dressings. Especially, the antibacterial evaluation revealed that the coating of chitosan significantly enhanced the growth inhibition of both S. aureus and E. coli. Therefore, the obtained membrane was considered as a potential candidate for wound dressing materials.