Electrospinning for healthcare: recent advancements

Electrospinning is a simple route to generate polymer-based fibres with diameters on the nano- to micron-scale. It has been very widely explored in biomedical science for applications including drug delivery systems, diagnostic imaging, theranostics, and tissue engineering. This extensive literature reveals that a diverse range of functional components including small molecule drugs, biologics, and nanoparticles can be incorporated into electrospun fibres, and it is possible to prepare materials with complex compartmentalised architectures. This perspective article briefly introduces the electrospinning technique before considering its potential applications in biomedicine. Particular attention is paid to the translation of electrospinning to the clinic, including the need to produce materials at large scale and the requirement to do so under Good Manufacturing Practice conditions. We finish with a summary of the key current challenges and future perspectives.

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or continue reading here: Electrospinning for healthcare: recent advancements  – Karolina Dziemidowicz ^a, Qingqing Sang ^bc, Jinglei Wu ^b, Ziwei Zhang ^a, Fenglei Zhou ^ad, Jose M. Lagaron^e, Xiumei Mo^b, Geoff J. M. Parker^d, Deng-Guang Yu^f, Li-Min Zhu^b and Gareth R. Williams *^a

^aUCL School of Pharmacy, University College London, 29-39 Brunswick Square, London WC1N 1AX, UK. E-mail: [email protected]
^bCollege of Chemistry, Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology, Donghua University, Shanghai 201620, China
^cDepartment of Surgery, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Gastric Neoplasms, Shanghai Institute of Digestive Surgery, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200025, China
^dCentre for Medical Image Computing, UCL Computer Science, University College London, 90 High Holborn, London WC1V 6LJ, UK
^eNovel Materials and Nanotechnology Group, Institute of Agrochemistry and Food Technology, Spanish Council for Scientific Research, Valencia 46100, Spain
^fSchool of Materials Science & Engineering, University of Shanghai for Science and Technology, 516 Jungong Road, Shanghai 200093, China

The electrospinning process

In the most commonly used electrospinning process, a solution of a polymer and drug is prepared in a volatile solvent. This is then loaded into a syringe fitted with a metal needle (the “spinneret”), and ejected at a controlled rate using a syringe pump. Without the application of an electrical field, droplets will form as a result of surface tension forces. In ES, the positive electrode of a high-voltage power supply is attached to the needle, with the grounded electrode connected to a collector plate. The application of voltage causes a charge to build up on the ejected droplet, which deforms into a conical shape (the “Taylor cone”). Above a critical voltage, a polymer jet is ejected from the Taylor cone and accelerates towards the grounded collector. As it does so, the jet narrows and solvent is evaporated. This ultimately results in nano–microscale dry fibres being deposited on the collector, if the processing parameters are appropriately established. A schematic of the ES process is depicted in Fig. 2.