Silk Fibroin for Biomedical Applications with Emphasis on Bioimaging, Biosensing and Regenerative Systems: A Review

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Biomedical Engineering
• Materials Chemistry

Background:

• Natural biomaterials like silk fibroin offer advantages over synthetics, including biocompatibility and biodegradability.
• Silk fibroin possesses favorable mechanical, thermal, electrical, and optical properties, along with processability and tunable degradation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the properties and applications of regenerated silk fibroin as a versatile biomaterial.
• To discuss silk fibroin's potential in bioimaging, sensing, wound care, and tissue engineering.

Main Methods:

• Summarizing structural, physicochemical, and functional properties of regenerated silk fibroin.
• Describing material fabrication methods (fibers, scaffolds, hydrogels, particles, films) and functionalization strategies.
• Examining biomedical applications including hybrid silk-fluorophore systems, sensors, wound dressings, and drug delivery.

Main Results:

• Regenerated silk fibroin can be processed into various formats and functionalized for specific applications.
• Silk fibroin shows promise in bioimaging, biosensing, health/food monitoring, wound healing, and tissue engineering.
• Current limitations include process variability, trade-offs from modifications, and challenges in clinical translation.

Conclusions:

• Silk fibroin is a multifunctional biomaterial with significant potential for next-generation biomedical devices and theranostic systems.
• Further research is needed to overcome limitations and facilitate clinical translation of silk fibroin-based technologies.