Preparation and Characterization of a Novel Hybrid Hydrogel Composed of Bombyx mori Fibroin and Poly(N-isopropylacrylamide)‎

Abstract EN

A novel hybrid hydrogel was prepared and investigated based on silkworm silk fibroin and poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAAm).

PNIPAAm was introduced to silk fibroin, the resultant composite hydrogel was examined, and freeze-dried SF/PNIPAAm scaffold was analyzed using LB-550 dynamic light scattering particle-size analyzer, circular dichroism (CD), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).

Our results suggested that the hybrid hydrogels owned the porous sponge-like structures, and the gelation time of SF/PNIPAAm hybrids decreased with an increase in temperature and concentration of each polymer.

Results of rheological analysis suggested that the rheological property of resultant SF/PNIPAAm gel depended on the concentration combinations as well as the aging time, which elapsed after mixing the two polymers.

Results of CD spectra demonstrated that pH showed little influence on the secondary structure of silk fibroin, and significant changes of G′, G′′, and G* as surrounding increase temperature above the lower critical solution temperature (LCST).