Preparation and characterization of crosslinked porous silk fibroin gel

Abstract

In order to develop new biomedical materials, the preparation and characterization of crosslinked porous silk fibroin gel (CPFG) were investigated by using ethylene glycol diglycidyl ether (EGDE) as a crosslinking agent. The CPFG was prepared by freezing (-50°C ∼ -5°C) and thawing a homogeneous fibroin solution containing EGDE. The average pore size of CPFG was varied from 100∼300μm by adjusting the concentrations of silk fibroin, EGDE and the freezing temperature. The tenacity and elongation ratio of CPFG were improved by increasing'the concentration of silk fibroin and EGDE within a certain range. From these results, it was found that CPFG with excellent properties can be prepared at low temperatures by using EGDE as a crosslinking agent.