First report of electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibers mats with chitin and chitosan nanowhiskers: Fabrication, characterization, and antibacterial activity

[Display omitted] •Electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibers mats (CANFs) were prepared and modified.•Chitin (CtNWs) and chitosan (CsNWs) nanowhiskers were used as modifying agents.•CtNWs added to the bulk phase did not alter surface properties of CANFs.•CsNWs efficiently coated the surface of CANFs through physical adsorption.•Nanofibers coated by CsNWs showed enhanced antibacterial activity and non-toxicity. Physical adsorption has shown to be facile and highly effective to deposit chitosan nanowhiskers (CsNWs, 60 % deacetylated, length: 247 nm, thickness: 4–12 nm, width:15 nm) on electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibers (CANFs, 560 nm) to effect complete surface charge reversal from negatively charged CANFs (−40 mV) to positively charged CsNWs-adsorbed CANFs (+8 mV). The CsNWs coverage did not alter the smooth and homogeneous morphology of fibers, as observed from SEM images. Biological assays showed the CsNWs covered nanofibers were effective against the Gram-negative bacterium E. coli, reducing 99 % of colony forming units (CFU) in 24 h and atoxic to healthy Vero cells. The use of CsNWs to modify cellulose fiber surfaces has been proved to be efficient and may be applied to a broad scope of fields, especially as biomaterials and biomedical applications.