Curcumin-Loaded Electrospun Fibers: Fluorescence and Antibacterial Activity

The health benefits and sensing applications of curcumin-based systems depend on their prevailing photophysical and chemical properties at a specific environment—the characteristic low solubility of curcumin in water hinders high-dosage based applications. To circumvent this drawback, curcumin has been incorporated in hydrophobic environments in nanoscale. Herein, electrospun fibers of Eudragit L100 were loaded with curcumin and applied in fluorescence and antibacterial assays to evaluate prevailing physical and chemical properties in solid-state. The characteristic high loading degree of curcumin (250 mg/mL in Eudragit L100 solution) preserves not only the photophysical properties of molecules (such as the intrinsic fluorescence) but also the antibacterial activity of released molecules from electrospun fibers, characterizing an important strategy for improvement in the applicability potential of natural materials.