Air-Jet Spun Corn Zein Nanofibers and Thin Films with Topical Drug for Medical Applications

Abstract

Diabetic patients are especially susceptible to chronic wounds of the skin, which can lead to serious complications. Sodium citrate is one potential therapeutic molecule for the topical treatment of diabetic ulcers, but its viability requires the assistance of a biomaterial matrix. In this study, nanofibers and thin films fabricated from natural corn zein protein are explored as a drug delivery vehicle for the topical drug delivery of sodium citrate. Corn zein is cheap and abundant in nature, and easily extracted with high purity, while nanofibers are frequently cited as ideal drug carriers due to their high surface area and high porosity. To further reduce costs, the 1-D nanofibers in this study were fabricated through an air jet-spinning method rather than the conventional electrospinning method. Thin films were also created as a comparative 2-D material. Corn zein composite nanofibers and thin films with different concentration of sodium citrate (1–30%) were analyzed through FTIR, DSC, TGA, and SEM. Results reveal that nanofibers are a much more effective vehicle than films, with the ability to interact with sodium citrate. Thermal analysis results show a stable material with low degradation, while FTIR reveals strong control over the protein secondary structures and hold of citrate. These tunable properties and morphologies allow the fibers to provide a sustained release of citrate and then revert to their structure prior to citrate loading. A statistical analysis via t-test confirmed a significant difference between fiber and film drug release. A biocompatibility study also confirms that cells are much more tolerant of the porous nanofiber structure than the nonporous protein films, and lower percentages of sodium citrate (1–5%) were outperformed to higher percentages (15–30%). This study demonstrated that protein-based nanofiber materials have high potential as vehicles for the delivery of topical diabetic drugs.

Fabrication and Characterization of Air-Jet-Spun Nanofibers and Thin Films from Corn Zein Protein for the Delivery of Therapeutic Molecules

“…Informed Consent Statement: Not applicable Data Availability Statement: The data presented in this study are available in [1].…”

“…Mechanism of interaction between drug and corn zein nanofibers or protein films [1]. Upon addition of the drug, the protein structure of the composite shifts from a random helical structure into an alpha helical conformation.…”

“…Despite the zein-drug interaction, however, the nanofibers can revert back to their original structure after the drug has been released. This makes corn zein nanofibers an interesting candidate for drug delivery; not only does the drug interact with the corn zein to stabilize it, but it does not permanently alter the protein structure of zein [1].…”

Artemether-Loaded Zein Nanoparticles: An Innovative Intravenous Dosage Form for the Management of Severe Malaria

“…However, as malaria is a disease of poverty [ 4 , 5 ], excipients with higher affordability are more appropriate for the intravenous delivery of antimalaria agents. Zein, a plant protein obtained from corn, has attracted significant interest in the biomedical community over the past decade [ 12 , 13 ]. As it is biodegradable, biocompatible and cost-effective, zein appears to be a promising excipient [ 12 , 13 ].…”

“…Zein, a plant protein obtained from corn, has attracted significant interest in the biomedical community over the past decade [ 12 , 13 ]. As it is biodegradable, biocompatible and cost-effective, zein appears to be a promising excipient [ 12 , 13 ]. In the present study, artemether-loaded zein nanoparticles were prepared by modified antisolvent precipitation using sodium caseinate as a stabilizer.…”