Incorporation of TiO2 and curcumin in polyacrylonitrile nanofibers for antibacterial applications

Oct 16, 2026

PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin nanofiber mats with varying TiO2 and curcumin concentrations were produced by electrospinning and evaluated for antibacterial performance. Structural and morphological characterization confirmed TiO2 nanoparticle incorporation in PAN nanofibers, supported by FT-IR results. The optimized PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin samples produced inhibition zones against E. coli of 17 mm and 27 mm, respectively. The study shows curcumin and TiO2 NPs synergistically improve antibacterial activity, supporting low-cost, real-life application potential.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages10

Reading Time25 min

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Abstract

Introduction

Antibacterial resistance and need for new agents

Nanotechnology and electrospun nanofibers

Rationale for PAN-based hybrids and curcumin/TiO2 addition

Bansode et al. Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Engineering (2026) 21:25 [https://doi.org/10.1186/s40712-026-00404-1](https://doi.org/10.1186/s40712-026-00404-1) Journal of Materials Science: Materials in Engineering ORIGINAL PAPER Open Access Incorporation ofTiO2 and curcumin in polyacrylonitrile nanofibers for antibacterial applications Samiksha G. Bansode 1, Snehal Gagare2, Subhash B. Kondawar3, Arif D. Sheikh4* and Dattatray J. Late5* Abstract The polyacrylonitrile (PAN)/ TiO2 nanofiber and PAN/TiO2/curcumin nanofiber mat containing various concentrations ofTiO2 and curcumin was fabricated using the electrospinning method and tested for its antibacterial performance. The PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin samples were characterized for structural and morphological analysis. The FT-IR analysis showed the presence ofTiO2 nanoparticles incorporated into PAN nanofibers. The maximum antimicrobial inhibition zone against E. coli are 17 mm and 27 mm for optimized concentrations of PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin samples. This investigation revealed that adding curcumin and TiO2 NPs in the PAN nanofibers significantly enhances the antibacterial performance. The synergistic effect between curcumin and TiO2 NPs contributes to this enhanced antibacterial performance, making the nanofibers potential candidates. Hence, our study indicates that low-cost nanofiber-based materials would be excellent modifications real-life antibacterial applications. Keywords Nanofibers, Electrospun, Curcumin, Antibacterial, E. coli *Correspondence: Arif D. Sheikh [ads.snst@unishivaji.ac.in](ads.snst@unishivaji.ac.in)[ ](ads.snst@unishivaji.ac.in)Dattatray J. Late [datta099@gmail.com](datta099@gmail.com) 1Centre for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Amity School of Engineering & Technology (ASET), Amity University Maharashtra, Mumbai 410206, India 2Department of Biotechnology, Modern College of Arts Science and Commerce, Ganeshkhind, Pune 411016, India 3Department of Physics, RashtrasantTukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University, Nagpur 440033, India 4School of Nanoscience and Biotechnology, Shivaji University, Kolhapur, Maharashtra 416004, India 5Department of Physics, Federal University of Lavras, Campus Universitário, PO Box 3037, Lavras, Minas Gerais 37200-000, Brazil Introduction Bacterial infections can range from minor illnesses due to their self-limiting ailments, if untreated, they could cause life-threatening conditions. However, the overuse of these drugs has led to a growing problem of resistance to antibiotics. As a result, some bacteria are becoming untreatable with the antibiotics that once worked effectively. The spread of antibiotic-resistant germs has accelerated globally, therefore World Health Organization (WHO) recommended new drugs for twelve different bacterial strains (Tacconelli et al. 2018). The harmful bacteria to human health include E. coli, Staphylococcus, and Micrococcus, which are generally found in the environment. Specifically, the E. coli pathogen can cause diseases such as enteritis, septicemia, urinary tract infections, and neonatal meningitis in humans (Navale et al. 2015a, 2015b; Allocati et al. 2013). Advancements in nanotechnology offer antibacterial nanomaterials to improve © The Author(s) 2026. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you

FAQs

What materials and concentrations were used to fabricate the nanofiber mats?

PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin nanofiber mats were fabricated with various concentrations of TiO2 and curcumin using the electrospinning method.

How were the samples characterized structurally and morphologically?

The samples were characterized for structural and morphological analysis, with FT-IR showing the presence of TiO2 nanoparticles incorporated into PAN nanofibers.

What antibacterial results were obtained against E. coli?

Optimized PAN/TiO2 and PAN/TiO2/curcumin samples produced maximum antimicrobial inhibition zones against E. coli of 17 mm and 27 mm, respectively.

Oct 16, 2026

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