Abstract
In this study, we describe the manufacturing and characterization of silk fibroin membranes derived from the silkworm Bombyx mori. To date, the dissolution process used in this study has only been researched to a limited extent, although it entails various potential advantages, such as reduced expenses and the absence of toxic chemicals in comparison to other conventional techniques. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine the influence of different fibroin concentrations on the process output and resulting membrane properties. Casted membranes were thus characterized with regard to their mechanical, structural and optical assets via tensile testing, SEM, light microscopy and spectrophotometry. Cytotoxicity was evaluated using BrdU, XTT, and LDH assays, followed by live–dead staining. The formic acid (FA) dissolution method was proven to be suitable for the manufacturing of transparent and mechanically stable membranes. The fibroin concentration affects both thickness and transparency of the membranes. The membranes did not exhibit any signs of cytotoxicity. When compared to other current scientific and technical benchmarks, the manufactured membranes displayed promising potential for various biomedical applications. Further research is nevertheless necessary to improve reproducible manufacturing, including a more uniform thickness, less impurity and physiological pH within the membranes.
Highlights
The development of functional materials that exhibit the capacity for interacting with biological systems poses one of the central challenges in biomedical engineering
We mainly focus on an applied research approach, evaluating both, a cost-effective method to manufacture silk fibroin membranes facilitating formic acid (FA)/CaCl2 as solvent and simultaneously assessing the most elemental requirements for medical devices, such as biocompatibility, by conducting in vitro assays based on the DIN EN ISO 10993 standard
We introduced a simple and inexpensive method for the production of silk fibroin membranes by using FA/CaCl2 solution as an initial solvent followed by a cascaded rinsing series in water and buffer solutions
Summary
The development of functional materials that exhibit the capacity for interacting with biological systems poses one of the central challenges in biomedical engineering. Proteins acquired from natural precursors, which themselves essentially prevail as structural and functional polymers, have been constituted as biomaterials. In this context, silk has gained significant attention among the scientific and clinical community due to its manyfold advantageous properties. Silk is employed as a raw material in its unaltered condition, as well as in its regenerated state after dissolution and further processing into various forms and shapes. Only a small number of applications of fibroin have been investigated in clinical studies or have been approved and certified as a medical device so far
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