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Updated: Feb 3, 2026
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Designing Silk-silk Protein Alloy Materials for Biomedical Applications
Published on: August 13, 2014
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Preparation and Characterization of Composite Blends Based on Polylactic Acid/Polycaprolactone and Silk
Shiva Balali1, Seyed Mohammad Davachi1,2, Razi Sahraeian3
1Department of Chemical and Polymer Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Central Tehran Branch , Islamic Azad University , Tehran , Iran.
Biomacromolecules
|October 24, 2018
Summary
Silk fibers enhance polylactic acid/poly ε-caprolactone composites for tissue engineering. The optimal 5% silk composite shows improved properties and faster degradation, making it suitable for various tissue applications.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Polymer Science
- Tissue Engineering
Background:
- Polylactic acid (PLA) and poly ε-caprolactone (PCL) are widely used biodegradable polymers.
- Enhancing their mechanical and degradation properties is crucial for advanced applications.
- Silk fibers offer a promising natural reinforcement option.
Purpose of the Study:
- To fabricate and characterize silk-reinforced PLA/PCL composites.
- To investigate the effect of varying silk fiber content on composite properties.
- To evaluate the suitability of these composites for tissue engineering.
Main Methods:
- Melt-mixing fabrication of PLA/PCL composites with 1-7 wt% silk fibers.
- Characterization using FTIR, DSC, rheometry, and SEM-EDX.
- Assessment of hydrophilicity, surface energy, and in vitro degradation.
Main Results:
- Silk addition decreased composite crystallinity but increased storage and loss moduli, indicating good interfacial bonding.
- The composite with 5% silk fiber (PLACLS5) exhibited optimal properties.
- Increased silk content led to reduced degradation time due to enhanced hydrophilicity and uniform dispersion.
Conclusions:
- Silk-reinforced PLA/PCL composites demonstrate tunable properties through controlled silk content.
- The optimized composite shows potential for both soft and hard tissue engineering applications.
- The enhanced hydrophilicity and degradation profile make these materials promising biomaterials.
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