Development of Artificial Dermis Using 3D Electrospun Silk Fibroin Nanofiber Matrix

Abstract

Several auto- or alloplastic dermal substitutes have been used for full thickness skin defects. However, there is no ideal dermal substitute that is biocompatible and offers adequate mechanical properties and sufficient thickness and volume. Silk fibroin can be considered a possible alternative material for the construction of dermal substitutes. Nanofibers fabricated by electrospinning silk fibroin were considered an excellent candidate due to their desirable biocompatibility. However, it is generally difficult for cells to infiltrate the electrospun silk fibroin due to its small pore size. To overcome this challenge, a key parameter is the control of the pore size of silk fibroin electrospun such that cells can easily infiltrate into the nanofibers and proliferate internally. In this work, a novel approach is introduced by dropping two different size NaCl crystals above the rotating collector, which become incorporated into the nanofibers. The structures and properties of the, resulting electrospun silk fibroin were characterized using scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and its wound healing effect for a full thickness skin defect was compared with Matriderm. Although the dermal regenerative effect of the 3D-SF (3D electrospun silk fibroin nanofiber matrix) was similar to that of Matriderm, the 3D-SF was almost completely degraded and did not induce wound contracture like Matriderm. We suggest that 3D-SF can be applied to the treatment of full thickness skin defects.

Electrospun silk fibroin fiber diameter influences in vitro dermal fibroblast behavior and promotes healing of ex vivo wound models

“…24 This work optimizing the architecture of BMSF scaffolds is likely to improve their wound healing ability further and through the validated ex vivo model presented here it will be possible to compare their performance prior to in vivo testing. The utility of BMSF scaffolds as dermal substitutes is likely to not be confined to cutaneous wound healing and due to the ease of architectural modification during the electrospinning process could be optimized for further applications.…”

“…24 Interestingly, the authors note that less contraction was evident in BMSF-treated wounds, which the authors attributed to the degradation rate of the fibroin matrix. 24 Aqueous BMSF solutions hold particular promise for the future inclusion of instructive cues due to elimination of harsh chemical reagents and fabrication conditions. Due to their intrinsic viscoelastic properties, aqueous BMSF solutions are commonly blended with high-molecular weight (Mw) polymers, such as poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO), which act as rheological modifiers and significantly enlarge the electrospinning processing window.…”

Electrospun polyurethane-dextran nanofiber mats loaded with Estradiol for post-menopausal wound dressing

“…The electrospun nanofiber can mimic the extra cellular matrix (ECM) environment which will help the host cells to grow and create a new natural cellular matrix [21,22]. Most importantly the preferred therapeutic materials can be introduced to the nanofiber matrix using the electrospinning process [17,23,24], that can seriously affect the wound healing.…”

Development of a glial cell-derived neurotrophic factor-releasing artificial dura for neural tissue engineering applications

“…This membrane can be damaged by trauma to the brain or spinal cord 3,4 . Many synthetic and natural materials are employed in neurosurgery to repair dural defects 2,[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16] . However, autografts require an accessible site and an additional operation for obtaining a healthy region of the dura.…”