Fabrication of Aloe Vera-loaded gelatin/poly(Ɛ-caprolactone) nanofibers with optimized mechanical properties

Recently, production of herbal extracts loaded nanofibers for biomedical applications has gained great attention. In this study nanofiberous scaffold from poly(Ɛ-caprolactone) (PCL), Gelatin (Gel) and Aloe-vera (AV) was prepared through tow-nozzles electrospinning process. We focused on using response surface methodology (RSM) to optimize the mechnical behavior of hybrid PCL-Gel/AV nanofibers. For this, RSM methodology based on three variables (Gel concentration, AV concentration and Gel/AV feed rate) and three levels was applied. In this method, the individual and interaction effect between the parameters on strain at break and tensile strength of nanofibers were determined using Box-Behnken design (BBD). Based on this model, optimum condition (Gel concentration of 10% (w/v), AV concentration of 10% (w/w) and Gel/AV flow rate of 1.6 (mL/h) ( were showed strain and tensile strength of about 5 MPa and 25% respectively.