Characterization of sodium carboxymethyl cellulose/calcium alginate scaffold loaded with curcumin in skin tissue engineering

Applying biological macromolecule like curcumin (CUC) has gained considerable attention for the anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, antimicrobial and antitumor properties. Therefore, this study was carried out to characterize carboxymethylcellulose/calcium alginate (CMC/CA) scaffold loaded with CUC in skin tissue engineering. To observe the structural, mechanical, degradability, biological and antibacterial effect of CUC, it was loaded in a cellulose-based electrospinning scaffold of sodium CMC (SCMC) with CA. The addition of CUC increased the fiber diameter to 504 +/- 83, and 522 +/- 25 nm in 3% and 5% of CUC concentrations, respectively. The elasticity of the scaffold was enhanced, while the scaffold strength was decreased slightly. The inhibitory zone in the scaffold containing CUC denoted to its antibacterial properties. In addition, the cell viability, proliferation and attachment to the electrospun scaffolds were increased. Utilization of CUC-loaded materials can play an important role in anti-bacterial performance of the scaffold. Although mechanical properties of SCMC may slightly decreased during the loading process, but the morphological, chemical, and biological properties were improved. It seems that applying electrospinning technique and CUC incorporation in fabricated scaffolds can be a promising choice in skin tissue engineering when antibacterial properties are also targeted in conjunction with the tensile strength.