Abstract
Monodisperse microspheres of reconstituted silkworm cocoon silk were produced using a glass capillary-based microfluidic system and by identifying an appropriate solvent/nonsolvent fluid system. The microspheres can be produced to a range of different diameters depending on the system flow rates and have a nearly homogeneous size distribution. The silk microspheres exhibit a unique core-shell architecture and have a largely β-sheet structure, as measured by infrared spectroscopy. Mechanical characterization was performed with AFM nanoindentation and indicates that the microspheres are unexpectedly soft for a silk material. Because silk is well established as biocompatible and biodegradable, we anticipate that these silk microspheres could have particular utility in drug delivery and controlled release.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 643-647 |
Number of pages | 5 |
Journal | Biomacromolecules |
Volume | 11 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 8 Mar 2010 |