WOUND HEALING POTENTIAL OF MULTISCALE POLYMERIC NANOCOMPOSITE LOADED WITH CuO NANOPARTICLES FROM Sargassum muticum EXTRACT ON HaCaT KERATINOCYTE CELLS MODEL

Abstract

This study investigates the wound healing potential of novel starch/polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) electrospun nanocomposite embedded with biogenically synthesized copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) derived from Sargassum muticum extract. The CuO NPs were synthesized via an ultrasonic-assisted green method and characterized using UV-Vis spectroscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), and zeta potential analysis. UV-Vis spectroscopy confirmed nanoparticle formation with a distinct SPR peak at 270 nm, while FTIR and XRD verified the presence of functional groups and monoclinic crystalline structure, respectively. SEM revealed well dispersed CuO NPs within the porous nanofiber scaffold, which exhibited enhanced thermal stability. In vitro wound healing assays using HaCaT keratinocytes demonstrated that the starch/PVA/CuO-NPs nanoscaffolds significantly accelerated cell migration, achieving up to 96.14% wound closure at 100 µg/mL—outperforming both algal extract (70.14%) and CuO NPs alone (84.14%). The results highlight the synergistic effect of the biocompatible nanocomposite and bioactive CuO NPs, positioning them as a promising advanced wound dressing material. Further research into their in vivo efficacy and mechanistic pathways is warranted.