The Promotion of Cell Attachment and Proliferation on Silk Fibroin

Abstract

Silk fibroin, a natural protein produced by silkworm, is a good biomaterial which has biodegradability and biocompatibility. To ascertain the effects of silk fibroin on cell growth, silk fibroin films were prepared using silk fibroin aqueous solutions of various concentrations. We investigated the attachment, proliferation, morphology of the cells and the expression levels of genes related to cell attachment and growth on the silk fibroin films. When the cells were cultured on the 0.1 and 1% silk fibroin film, the cell adhesion ability was very excellent. Particularly, overall cell growth on the 1% silk fibroin film was definitely superior to the others. Also, expression levels of genes related cell growth were increased on the 0.1 and 1% silk fibroin film. These results suggest silk as a material for medical applications.