Antibacterial and Cytotoxicity Activity Polypropylene Span band Non-Woven Fabric Coated by Nisin-Chitosan

Activated textiles have created a new field of application apart from standard textile applications. Novel, functions, for example, antimicrobial properties have been enhanced in textiles. New textile application fields have been recognized for particular areas of healthcare as well as industry, sportswear, and, home textiles. Advances in the field of antibacterial textiles have fascinated enhancing attention because those are a means to solve serious health challenges such as bacterial overgrowth. A lot of research has been done in the field of adding synthetic and toxic materials to fabrics, such as nanosilver triclosan or other metals and organic materials to produce antimicrobial fabrics. These fabrics kill bacteria by binding to intracellular proteins and inactivating these proteins. Also, by using these chemicals, the content of heavy metals in these textiles can be increased. The application of heavy metals in antimicrobial textiles is limited by many environmental tags and standards. Therefore, it is recommended to use natural antimicrobial agents, such as nisin and chitosan to produce environmentally friendly and safe antimicrobial fabrics. Nowadays finishing process with the natural antibacterial agents that protect the environment and human health is gaining importance. Therefore, this study aims to produce fabric coated with chitosan and nisin and to investigate its antimicrobial properties.

In this research, chitosan was used to bind nisin to the surface of polypropylene span band non-woven fabric. The fabric samples were coated with a solution containing chitosan and nisin using a pad-dry-cure method. The appearance, color, and softness of the coated fabrics were compared to the uncoated fabric. The nisin and chitosan binding properties on the fabric were explored by using the Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR (technique. The diffusion method in agar and the standard method (ASTME2149-01) were used to check the antimicrobial properties of fabric samples. The antibacterial effectiveness of fabric samples was tested against common bacteria such as Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus cereus, Listeria monocytogenes, and Enterococcus faecalis. After ten washing cycles, the durability of the antimicrobial properties of these fabrics was checked by the method mentioned above. Also, the toxicity of this fabric on fibroblast cells was determined using the MTT colorimetry method after seven days.

Fabrics coated with chitosan and nisin do not differ much from the control sample in terms of appearance and softness. The changes observed in the FTIR spectrum, such as the appearance of new absorption peaks and additional peaks associated with peptide bonds, confirm the successful incorporation of nisin and chitosan into the fabric. Antibacterial results have shown that nisin improved the antibacterial effect of coated fabrics versus B. cereus, S. aureus, and P. aeruginosa. The antimicrobial properties of the fabric coated with chitosan-nisin were maintained at some of the efficacy after washing against B. cereus, S. aureus, E. faecalis, L. monocytogenes, E. coli, and P. aeruginosa respectively. Also, the chitosan-nisin coating showed that it did not cause significant toxicity in fibroblast cells even after one week.

However, the results showed that the chitosan/nisin coating might be used for medical textiles and antibacterial textiles. It also offers an innovative solution to protect human health and the environment.