Reinforced non-mulberry silk fibroin–fibroin nanocomposites and their optimization for tissue engineering applications

Non-mulberry silk fibroin (SF) has been widely explored in the field of tissue engineering because of its non-immunogenic, non-cytotoxic, and better biophysical characteristics. Being one of the non-mulberry species, Antheraea assamensis SF (AA-SF), or “ muga ,” contributes a lot in this field. In the present study, emphasizing the prominent properties exhibited by AA-SF, we have fabricated 2D (films) and 3D (scaffolds) nanocomposite matrices (NcM) for the first time by reinforcing AA-SF nanoparticles with AA-SF solution. The results exhibited improved mechanical properties for both types of matrices. Scanning electro-microscope (SEM) and atomic force microscope (AFM) images of 2D AA-SF-NcM showed an increase in surface roughness with an increase in the concentration of the nanoparticles. Three different concentrations of the nanoparticles (0.01, 0.1, and 0.2 mg/ml) were used to fabricate the NcM in order to get an idea about the best optimized 2D and 3D models. SEM images of 3D AA-SF-NcM showed interlinking between the pores formed by the reinforced nanoparticles, thereby reducing the pore size. These variations in the matrices were further evaluated using cell proliferation assays in both 2D and 3D matrices for tissue engineering applications. HeLa cell lines were used for the study. The results demonstrated that NcM with a 0.1 mg/ml nanoparticle concentration reflects higher rates of cell proliferation and has overall improved properties as an optimized model for future tissue engineering applications. Graphical Abstract