Aligned electrospun starch-pullulan-protein fibers

Abstract

Electrospun nanofiber mats with potential utility as functionalized scaffolding for cultivated meat were fabricated from octenyl succinic anhydride (OSA) modified starch, pullulan, and either glycomacropeptide (GMP) or whey protein isolate (WPI). A statistical mixture design was used to establish the influence of polymer composition on spinning dope properties including conductivity, surface tension, shear viscosity, and elasticity and relate these properties to spun fiber morphology. Component composition varied – starch 16–24 %, pullulan 4–6 %, protein 0–10 % – while maintaining the overall polymer content at 30 % w/w. The propensity for fiber beading was inversely associated with a timescale for bead formation dependent on the ratio of viscosity to surface tension and directly to a timescale for fiber solidification/drying altered by adjusting relative humidity. Smooth, continuous nanofibers, average diameter of 461–526 nm, were obtained from mixtures that contained less than 4% (w/w) protein, whereas mixtures with greater than 6% (w/w) protein resulted in fibers with beading. Generally, GMP-containing nanofibers exhibited less beading than WPI-containing nanofibers. Aligned fiber mats were produced using a rotating drum collector at different speeds varying from 3600 to 5600 rpm that may serve to template cell growth.