Biological Properties of Regenerated Silk Fibroin Films

The aim of the investigation was to study the biological and mechanical properties of silk fibroin films and composite silk fibroin films containing 30% collagen by weight. Materials and Methods. All films were prepared by casting method using water and formic acid as solvents. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were applied. Human hepatoblastoma cell line Hep-G(2) was used to test film compatibility. Results. We studied surface roughness degree of the obtained films. Water-based films were found to have permeability for low molecular weight substances. Tensile strength and elasticity indices were measured for all types of films. Collagen added to film composition was revealed to have no significant effect on tensile strength, though it increased film elasticity. We studied the degradation of films. Collagen was shown to have no significant impact on film degradation rate both in phosphate-buffer saline and oxidizing media. We demonstrated with an example of cell line Hep-G(2) that water-based films exhibit higher proliferative activity. Conclusion. Silk fibroin water solution has the best properties to develop films for tissue engineering.