Organic Solvent-Free Preparation of Chitosan Nanofibers with High Specific Surface Charge and Their Application in Biomaterials

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c21796
• Publication Date: 2021-02-24T16:23:00Z
• Authors: Sihan Zhang; Guanglei Zhao; Jiming Wang; Chong Xie; Wenquan Liang; Kebing Chen; Ying Wen; Xiaofeng Li
• Keywords: CSNF; Chemical Sciences not elsewhere classified; Immunology; chitosan nanofibers; Static Electricity; Biophysics; Nanofibers; Plant Biology; Biocompatible Materials; 02 engineering and technology; Biochemistry; Cell Line; Mice; Cell Adhesion; Animals; Molecular Biology; Pharmacology; Chitosan; Osteoblasts; Ecology; Tissue Engineering; Tissue Scaffolds; rootlike chitosan nanofibers; chitosan nanofiber paper; Organic Solvent-Free Preparation; Hematology; chitosan films; method; chitosan nanofiber scaffold products; CSNFP; 0210 nano-technology; Physical Sciences not elsewhere classified; calvaria-derived preosteoblastic cells; Biotechnology; Developmental Biology

The application of chitosan nanofibers in biological tissue-engineering materials has attracted wide attention. A novel and organic solvent-free method was developed for the fabrication of rootlike chitosan nanofibers (CSNFs) with diameters of 40-250 nm. This method includes three-step mechanical processing of swelling-beating-centrifugation or swelling-beating-homogenization. The obtained nanofibers showed high yields (>95%) and positive specific surface charges (up to +375 μeq/g) and could be uniformly dispersed in the aqueous phase. The unique fiber shape and the good length-to-diameter ratio of CSNFs endowed chitosan nanofiber paper (CSNFP) products with excellent mechanical properties, and the wet tensile strength of the CSNFPs was nearly five times higher than common chitosan films. In addition, the calvaria-derived preosteoblastic cells exhibited a higher adherence efficiency and proliferation on CSNFP than on chitosan films. The chitosan nanofiber scaffold products also benefited the attachment of preosteoblastic cells and allowed them to grow in three dimensions. This method has significant industrial potential for the industrialization of chitosan nanofibers, which may have broad applications in various biomaterials.