This study aims to develop an eco-friendly active packaging film to preserve perishable food. The film was prepared using natural polymers like sodium alginate and gelatin. Further, Clove oil was added to these films to improve their antioxidant and antimicrobial properties. The films' transmission was low, i.e., similar to 18.79% in 315-400 nm, lower, i.e., 14.41% in the UV region of 200-400 nm, and lowest, i.e., 12.21% in 200-280 nm with a band gap of similar to 3.52 eV, showing the effectiveness of films in shielding UV light. The films were hydrophilic and showed a low water vapor transmission rate. The packaging films showed thermal stability and reduced swelling. Freeze-thaw and high-temperature annealing significantly improved the film's mechanical properties (Y = 10.39 MPa and sigma = 23.37 MPa). The Chorioallantoic Membrane (CAM) assay in the chick model showed the films' biocompatibility. After 28 days, the films were completely biodegradable in soil, providing a sustainable solution for food packaging. Active packaging film showed significant antibacterial properties against Gram-positive S. aureus (colony-forming unit (CFU) reduced from 92 +/- 4.2 to 3 +/- 0.2, i.e., 96.74 +/- 5.13% inhibition) and Gram-negative E. coli (colony-forming unit reduced from 106 +/- 6 to 95 +/- 4.11, i.e., 96.13 +/- 3.41%). These films showed significant antioxidant activity and effectively delayed the decay of bananas (Musa acuminata), making them a promising solution for food packaging with excellent UV blocking, antimicrobial, and antioxidant properties. [GRAPHICS] .

The physico-chemical and biological properties of natural rubber latex (NRL), entailing its biodegradability and biocompatibility, render it a promising material for various biomedical applications. This research explores the facile blending of NRL with dextrin in different compositions to investigate its potential as a prospective UV shielding transdermal patch for biomedical applications. The superior compatibility between the polymers after blending and the improved thermal stability have been established through FTIR, DSC, and TGA examinations, respectively. Optimization of blended polymers for compatibility, wettability, crystallinity, and static mechanical properties has been performed. Morphology characterization conducted via SEM and AFM techniques suggests a uniform morphology for the optimized blend system. The UV shielding ability of the blend has been confirmed by the evaluation of in-vitro UV shielding performance, UV protection factor (UPF), and the superior protection of the optimized system on living cells upon UV irradiation. The observed cell viability, swelling, erosion, porosity, hemocompatibility, and soil degradation properties suggest the NRL-DXT combination for the possible development of high-quality transdermal patches.