Novel Blend for Producing Porous Chitosan-Based Films Suitable for Biomedical Applications

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Polymer Chemistry

Background:

• Chitosan and gelatin are biocompatible polymers with potential in tissue engineering.
• Ferulic acid offers antioxidant and potential therapeutic properties.
• Developing novel composite films requires careful selection of solvents and plasticizers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To prepare and characterize novel chitosan-gelatin-ferulic acid blend films for biomedical applications.
• To investigate the effect of different solvents (acetic acid vs. formic acid) and plasticizers on film properties.
• To evaluate the suitability of these films as scaffolds for biomedical uses.

Main Methods:

• Chitosan-gelatin-ferulic acid blends were prepared in various ratios.
• Films were cast using acetic acid or formic acid as solvents, with glycerol as a plasticizer.
• Film properties including thickness, mechanical strength, water contact angle, and water uptake were measured.
• Comprehensive characterization included FT-IR, XRD, TGA, DSC, and SEM.

Main Results:

• Acetic acid resulted in compact films unsuitable for biomedical testing.
• Formic acid, with glycerol plasticization, yielded hexagonal porous films (10-14 µm pore size).
• These optimized films exhibited decreased thickness and desirable characteristics for scaffold applications.

Conclusions:

• Plasticized chitosan-gelatin-ferulic acid films prepared using formic acid are promising for biomedical scaffolds.
• The hexagonal porous structure and reduced thickness enhance their potential for tissue engineering.
• Further testing is recommended for these novel biomaterials.