We report an interesting finding of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) crystal growth in the silk fibroin (SF) hydrogel with different concentrations by a simple ion diffusion method. The experimental results indicate that the CaCO3 crystals obtained from silk fibroin gels with low and high concentrations are all calcites with unusual morphologies. Time-dependent growth study was carried out to investig...

A physical map of the DNA containing the gene for silk fibroin was developed from direct hybridization analysis of restriction endonuclease digests of total Bombyx mori DNA using fibroin 125I-mRNA. The orientation of mRNA transcription relative to this map was deduced from the sensitivity of the mRNA coding strand within certain DNA restriction segments to lambda-exonuclease and exonuclease III...

the domesticated silkworm, bombyx mori linn., a lepidopteran molecular model and an important economic insect that are emerging as an ideal molecular genetic resource for solving a broad range of biological problems. the silkworm, b. mori produces massive amount of silk proteins during the final stage of larval development. these proteins are stored in the middle silk gland and they are dischar...

Controlling the mechanism of self-assembly in proteins has emerged as a potent tool for various biomedical applications. Silk fibroin self-assembly consists of gradual conformational transition from random coil to β-sheet structure. In this work we elucidated the intermediate secondary conformation in the presence of Ca(2+) ions during fibroin self-assembly. The interaction of fibroin and calci...

In this study, Schwann cells, at a density of 1 × 10(5) cells/well, were cultured on regenerated silk fibroin nanofibers (305 ± 84 nm) prepared using the electrospinning method. Schwann cells cultured on the silk fibroin nanofibers appeared more ordered, their processes extended further, and they formed more extensive and complex interconnections. In addition, the silk fibroin nanofibers had no...

This study describes the developmental physicochemical properties of silk fibroin scaffolds derived from high-concentration aqueous silk fibroin solutions. The silk fibroin scaffolds were prepared with different initial concentrations (8, 10, 12 and 16%, in wt.%) and obtained by combining the salt-leaching and freeze-drying methodologies. The results indicated that the antiparallel β-pleated sh...

Silks are naturally occurring polymers that have been used clinically as sutures for centuries. When naturally extruded from insects or worms, silk is composed of a filament core protein, termed fibroin, and a glue-like coating consisting of sericin proteins. In recent years, silk fibroin has been increasingly studied for new biomedical applications due to the biocompatibility, slow degradabili...

Intracellular transport and secretion of fibroin in the posterior silk gland cells of the silkworm, Bombyx mori, were investigated in relation to the radial microtubule and circular microtubule-microfilament systems of the cells. The silk glands were pulse-labelled for 3 min with [3H]glycine in vitro and then chased in media containing excess cold glycine and in some cases antimitotic reagents ...

Silk-based matrix was produced for delivery of a model anticancer drug, methotrexate (MTX). The calculation of net charge of silk fibroin and MTX was performed to better understand the electrostatic interactions during matrix formation upon casting. Silk fibroin films were cast at pH 7.2 and pH 3.5. Protein kinase A was used to prepare phosphorylated silk fibroin. The phosphorylation content of...

Acellular scaffolds derived from Bombyx mori silk fibroin were investigated for their ability to support functional tissue regeneration in a rabbit model of urethra repair. A bi-layer silk fibroin matrix was fabricated by a solvent-casting/salt leaching process in combination with silk fibroin film casting to generate porous foams buttressed by homogeneous silk fibroin films. Ventral onlay uret...