Antibacterial properties of electrospun Ti3C2Tz (MXene)/chitosan nanofibers

Electrospun natural polymeric bandages are highly desirable due to their low-cost, biodegradability, non-toxicity and antimicrobial properties. Functionalization of these nanofibrous mats with two-dimensional nanomaterials is an attractive strategy to enhance the antibacterial effects. Herein, we demonstrate an electrospinning process to produce encapsulated delaminated Ti3C2Tz (MXene) flakes within chitosan nanofibers for passive antibacterial wound dressing applications. In vitro antibacterial studies were performed on crosslinked Ti3C2Tz/chitosan composite fibers against Gram-negative Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Gram-positive Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) – demonstrating a 95% and 62% reduction in colony forming units, respectively, following 4 h of treatment with the 0.75 wt% Ti3C2Tz – loaded nanofibers. Cytotoxicity studies to determine biocompatibility of the nanofibers indicated the antibacterial MXene/chitosan nanofibers are non-toxic. The incorporation of Ti3C2Tz single flakes on fiber morphology was analyzed by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron microscopy equipped with an energy-dispersive detector (TEM-EDS). Our results suggest that the electrospun Ti3C2Tz/chitosan nanofibers are a promising candidate material in wound healing applications.