title: A comparative investigation of Bombyx mori silk fibroin hydrogels generated by chemical and enzymatic cross-linking.
abstract: Fibroin, the major proteinaceous component of the silk fiber produced by larvae of the domesticated silk moth (Bombyx mori), has been widely investigated as a biomaterial for potential applications in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. Following sol-gel transition, silk fibroin solutions can generate hydrogels that present certain advantages when employed as biomaterials, especially if they are cross-linked. The subject of this study was the self-cross-linking of silk fibroin through a process induced by the enzyme horseradish peroxidase (HRP) in the presence of hydrogen peroxide, a method only recently proposed and scarcely reported. The hydrogels were prepared either by physical cross-linking, by cross-linking with a natural compound (genipin), or by enzymatic cross-linking. The products were comparatively characterized in regard to their synthesis and background chemical aspects, physical and optical properties, mechanical properties, secondary structure, swelling/deswelling behavior, enzymatic degradation, and compatibility as substrates for cell adhesion and proliferation. The study confirmed the advantages of the HRP-induced cross-linking, which included considerably shorter gelation times, enhanced elasticity of the resulting hydrogels, and improved cytocompatibility. Discrepancies between certain results of this investigation and those reported previously were discussed in detail.
authors.affiliation: Queensland Eye Institute, South Brisbane, Australia.|Science & Engineering Faculty, Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia.|Australian Institute of Bioengineering & Nanotechnology, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Australia.|Faculty of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Herston, Australia.|Faculty of Science, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia.
authors.forename: Traian V
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6278-3168
authors.initials: TV
authors.lastname: Chirila
authors.affiliation: Queensland Eye Institute, South Brisbane, Australia.
authors.forename: Shuko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suzuki
authors.affiliation: Polytech Marseille, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Aix-Marseille University, Site Luminy, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Chloé
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Papolla
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D012831:Bombyx; D002460:Cell Line; D049109:Cell Proliferation; D002470:Cell Survival; D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D005349:Fibroins / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000737:chemistry; D006735:Horseradish Peroxidase / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D015394:Molecular Structure
chemical_list: D003432:Cross-Linking Reagents; D020100:Hydrogels; D005349:Fibroins; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D006735:Horseradish Peroxidase
keywords: biomaterials; cell cultivation; enzymatic reactions; genipin; horseradish peroxidase; silk fibroin; tissue engineering