ZnO/TiO 2 /SiO 2 nanocomposite was synthesized using microwave assisted sol-gel method and characterized using UV-Visible spectroscopy, XRD, SEM, EDX, FT-IR and TEM analysis. XRD results showed the crystallite in anatase phase. FT-IR reports bands that appeared at 1108 and 862 cm-1which shows the formation of Si-O-Si and Zn-O-Ti bonds. SEM and EDX analysis showed the incorporation of ZnO nanoparticle with the TiO 2 /SiO 2 nanocomposite which increase the separation of electron-hole pairs and can enhance in photocatalytic activity on methylene blue dye under sunlight irradiation. Ultrasound irradiation was applied for the impregnation of ZTS nanocomposite with homogeneous distribution on cotton fabrics. The antibacterial activities of the ZTS impregnated cotton fabrics observed against Escherichia coli (Gram negative) and Staphylococcus aureus (Gram positive) cultures was significant. The effectiveness of fabric treatment is assessed by excellent Ultraviolet protection factor (UPF).
Wound healing is an intrinsic process directed towards the restoration of damaged or lost tissue. The development of a dressing material having the ability to control the multiple aspects of the wound environment would be an ideal strategy to improve wound healing. Though natural silk proteins, fibroin, and sericin have demonstrated tissue regenerative properties, the efficacy of bioengineered silk proteins on wound healing is seldom assessed. Furthermore, silk proteins sans contaminants, having low molecular masses, and combining with other bioactive factors can hasten the wound healing process. Herein, recombinant silk proteins, fibroin and sericin, and their fusions with cecropin B were evaluated for their wound-healing effects using in vivo rat model. The recombinant silk proteins demonstrated accelerated wound closure in comparison to untreated wounds and treatment with Povidone. Among all groups, the treatment with recombinant sericin-cecropin B (RSC) showed significantly faster healing, greater than 90% wound closure by Day 12 followed by recombinant fibroin-cecropin B (RFC) (88.86%). Furthermore, histological analysis and estimation of hydroxyproline showed complete epithelialization, neovascularization, and collagenisation in groups treated with recombinant silk proteins. The wound healing activity was further verified by in vitro scratch assay using HADF cells, where the recombinant silk proteins induced cell proliferation and cell migration to the wound area. Additionally, wound healing-related gene expression showed recombinant silk proteins stimulated the upregulation of EGF and VEGF and regulated the expression of TGF-β1 and TGF-β3. Our results demonstrated the enhanced healing effects of the recombinant silk fusion proteins in facilitating complete tissue regeneration with scar-free healing. Therefore, the recombinant silks and their fusion proteins have great potential to be developed as smart bandages for wound healing.
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