Combining Electrospun Nanofibers, Paenibacillus polymyxa Fermented Broth, and Silver Nanoparticles for Enhanced Antimicrobial Materials

Author(s)

Oliveira, Luis F. R. ; Teodoro, Kelcilene B. R. ; Andre, Rafaela S. ; Costa, Vittor P. V. ; Cavicchioli, Rafael ; Mercante, Luiza A. ; de Sousa, Cristina P. ; Correa, Daniel S.

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: BIONANOSCIENCE; v. 15, n. 3, p. 13-pg., 2025-09-01.

Abstract

The World Health Organization has identified antimicrobial resistance as one of the top ten significant threats to global public health. For instance, it is predicted that conventional antibiotics will progressively lose their efficacy, accentuating the urgency to find innovative solutions to combat microorganisms. Efforts to develop novel antimicrobial agents are highly sought, as well as to explore the potential of natural products, such as plant extracts, and microbial secondary metabolites. In this direction, the Paenibacillus polymyxa RNC-D fermented broth (PFB), which is rich in antimicrobial peptides, was tested as component of nanostructured antimicrobial mat. For this, PFB was incorporated into polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibers produced by electrospinning, which were further modified with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to produce enhanced antimicrobial materials. The materials were physicochemically characterized using distinct techniques, while the microbiological studies were carried out using the agar disk diffusion method, microbial penetration test and percentage of bacterial growth inhibition in suspension. The results showed that the incorporation of 25% of the PFB caused a significant improvement in the fiber spinnability, resulting in nanofibers with less surface defects. Moreover, the wettability and hydrophilicity of the mats increased. Antimicrobial studies demonstrated the importance of the PFB to the formulation, which acted synergically, improving the distribution of AgNPs onto the fibers. While the fibrous mats demonstrated a protective effect against environmental microbes, when combined with AgNPs the PCL/PFB mats exhibited an inhibition halo of approximately 11.1 +/- 0.4 mm in the agar diffusion test and showed capability of inhibiting the bacterial growth against E. coli. Therefore, our results demonstrate that combining electrospun nanofibers membrane, fermented broth and silver nanoparticles can be an alternative for developing enhanced antimicrobial materials with potential for biomedical applications. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 16/13423-5 - Compounds produced by endophyte microorganisms isolated from Brazilian tropical savannah: bioactivity, association with a-Ag2WO4 and biotechnological applications
• Grantee: Cristina Paiva de Sousa
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• FAPESP's process: 23/13428-0 - Conductive composite microneedles manufactured by 3D printing and applications in wearable biosensors
• Grantee: Kelcilene Bruna Teodoro Costa
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Support Program for Fixating Young Doctors
• FAPESP's process: 16/23793-4 - Development of nanostructured sensor aiming the detection of volatile compounds for food quality indicators
• Grantee: Rafaela da Silveira Andre
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral