Development of Bacterial Cellulose Membranes Incorporated with Plant Extracts

A new generation of functional healing membranes has been researched to avoid infection and improve wound healing, combining wound moisture maintenance properties, exudate removal, antimicrobial activity, and the absence of side effects. Thus, this work aims to synthesize wound dressing membranes of bacterial cellulose (BC) incorporated with different plant extracts with antimicrobial properties. The BC membranes are synthesized by the bacterium Komagataeibacter hansenii and are associated with the extracts through the ex situ incorporation technique. The barbatimao extract presents the most significant total phenolic content and antimicrobial activity of the extracts researched. The determination of tannins and flavonoids confirms the extracts' incorporation into the samples' structure. The thermogravimetric analysis of the membranes incorporated with the extracts shows a reduction in the thermal stability relative to BC. The results show a good final extract for developing healing membranes with antimicrobial properties.