Comparative Evaluation of Silver, Neem, and Chitosan-Loaded PVA-CMC Electrospun Nanofibrous Mats for Potential Antibacterial Application

Abstract

Electrospinning has emerged as a versatile and efficient technique for producing antibacterial nanofibrous mats by enabling the incorporation of various bioactive agents into polymeric fiber systems. In this study, nanofibrous mats based on poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and Carboxymethyl Cellulose (CMC) polymers were successfully fabricated with the inclusion of three different Antibacterial Agents, Namely Chitosan, Silver Nanoparticles (AgNPs), and ethanolic extract of neem (Azadirachta indica) leaf. The electrospinning solutions were prepared using a fixed volumetric ratio (PVA:CMC:antibacterial additive) in order to establish a comparative evaluation of structural and antibacterial performance under identical conditions. Synthesized AgNPs exhibited a narrower particle size distribution, confirming uniform nanoparticle formation. SEM images revealed the formation of continuous, randomly oriented nanofibrous networks. FTIR spectroscopy confirmed the presence of characteristic functional groups of the antibacterial agents without significant alteration of the base polymeric structures. The agar disk diffusion method was employed to evaluate antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, and the results demonstrated that AgNPs-loaded mats exhibited the highest inhibition zones, followed by neem-loaded mats, while chitosan showed comparatively lower activity. Overall, this study highlights the comparative effectiveness of incorporating different antibacterial agents into PVA-CMC polymer-based nanofibers.