title: Unexpected strength and toughness in chitosan-fibroin laminates inspired by insect cuticle.
abstract: A material inspired by natural insect cuticle and composed of chitosan and fibroin is created. The material exhibits the strength of an aluminum alloy at half its weight, while being clear, biocompatible, biodegradable, and micromoldable. The bioinspired laminate exhibits strength and toughness that are ten times greater than the unstructured component blend and twice that of its strongest constituent.
authors.affiliation: Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
authors.forename: Javier G
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Fernandez
authors.forename: Donald E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Ingber
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D040761:Biomimetic Materials / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000378:metabolism*; D048271:Chitosan / Q000378:metabolism*; D005349:Fibroins / Q000378:metabolism*; D007313:Insecta / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D034582:Integumentary System; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared
chemical_list: D005349:Fibroins; D048271:Chitosan