BIODEGRADABLE SODIUM CARBOXYMETHYL CELLULOSE MEMBRANES CONTAINING MELALEUCA ESSENTIAL OILS FOR WOUND CARE MATERIAL

NaCMC is a biocompatible polymer that can be crosslinked with citric acid to form a gel matrix. Melaleuca oils have antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties with potential for wound healing. The goal of this work was to investigate the characteristics of NaCMC-Melaleuca oils gels. The gels were characterized by FTIR, TGA, mechanical analysis, and in vitro swelling and S. aureus inhibition tests. The oils were characterized using chromatography, presenting high values of (1,8-cineol/terpinen-4-ol), and evaluated for confirmation of their effect against S. aureus. The samples showed physical interactions between NaCMC, citric acid and the Melaleuca oils. Erosion in saline solution was higher in the gels with oils, attributable to interference with crosslinking. The membranes presented high contribution of relaxation mechanism and low contribution of Fickian diffusion regarding the swelling ability. The presence of the oils increased thermal stability and diminished gel fraction and mechanical properties, indicating that the oils interact with the matrix anchoring the chains. Although melaleuca oils themselves were active against S. aureus and CA was responsible for the NaCMC hydrogels activity, the incorporation of melaleuca oils in NaCMC gels was not reported previously. This report indicates that NaCMC hydrogel may be a proper matrix for essential oils incorporation.

羧甲基纤维素钠（NaCMC）是一种生物相容性聚合物，可与柠檬酸（citric acid，缩写CA）交联形成凝胶基质。白千层精油（Melaleuca oils）具备抗菌与抗炎特性，在伤口愈合领域具有应用潜力。本研究旨在探究NaCMC-白千层精油复合凝胶的性能特征。实验采用傅里叶变换红外光谱（FTIR）、热重分析（TGA）、力学性能分析、体外溶胀实验以及金黄色葡萄球菌（S. aureus）抑制实验对所制备的凝胶进行表征。通过色谱法对白千层精油进行分析，结果显示其1,8-桉叶素/松油烯-4-醇含量较高，并通过实验验证了其抗金黄色葡萄球菌的活性。实验结果表明，NaCMC、柠檬酸与白千层精油之间存在物理相互作用。添加精油的凝胶在生理盐水中的溶蚀率更高，这可归因于精油对交联过程的干扰。就溶胀性能而言，该凝胶膜的溶胀机制以松弛机制为主，菲克扩散（Fickian diffusion）的贡献较低。精油的引入提升了体系的热稳定性，但降低了凝胶分数与力学性能，这表明精油可与基质相互作用，锚定聚合物链。尽管白千层精油本身具有抗金黄色葡萄球菌活性，且柠檬酸是赋予NaCMC水凝胶抗菌活性的组分，但此前尚未有将白千层精油掺入NaCMC凝胶中的相关报道。本研究表明，NaCMC水凝胶可作为一种合适的基质用于精油的负载。