Electrospinning Equipment: Improving wound healing using nanoporous silk sponges

Research progress of silk fibroin nanoporous sponge (SFNS)

Zheng Zhaozhu and Wang Xiaoqin's team from Soochow University developed a simple and direct method to prepare macroporous sponges with nanopores. The preparation process of silk fibroin (SF) sponge (SFNS) containing nanopores is to first produce SF nanoparticles during the high-pressure sterilization of SF solution, and then leaching SF nanoparticles from the freeze-dried sponge of SF. Compared with SF sponge (SFS) without nanopores, SFNS has significantly increased porosity and water permeability, as well as better cell attachment and proliferation ability. In the rat skin wound model, SFNS is superior to SFS in accelerating wound healing, and can promote angiogenesis, collagen deposition and increased epidermal thickness.

Application of electrospinning equipment in silk fibroin materials

Electrospinning equipment can produce high-performance nanofibers with high specific surface area, high porosity and good biocompatibility, which are widely used in tissue engineering, drug delivery and other fields. Combining electrospinning technology with the study of silk fibroin can further improve the performance and application effect of the material:

Preparing nanofiber structures: Electrospinning can produce uniform continuous fibers with diameters ranging from nanometers to micrometers, which can be used to build the reinforced structure of SFNS and improve its mechanical properties and stability.

Regulating fiber morphology and arrangement: By adjusting the parameters in the electrospinning process (such as spinning solution concentration, viscosity, electric field strength, etc.), the diameter and morphology of the fiber can be precisely controlled to optimize the performance of the material.

Loading bioactive substances: Electrospinning equipment can prepare nanofiber scaffolds loaded with bioactive molecules, and by controlling the release rate, the continuous effect of bioactive substances in the wound healing site can be achieved.

Combination with other technologies: Electrospinning technology can also be combined with 3D printing technology to achieve the precise construction of complex three-dimensional structures. For example, by installing an electrospinning print head and an extrusion print head at the same time, the printing process of active biological structures can be completed in a single step. This combination can provide more design freedom and higher precision for the preparation of SFNS, meeting the personalized customization of different wound healing needs.

Summary and Outlook

As a new type of wound dressing material, silk fibroin nanoporous sponge (SFNS) can effectively promote cell migration, angiogenesis and tissue regeneration through its unique hierarchical multi-scale pore structure, showing great potential in wound healing. Electrospinning equipment plays an important role in the preparation of SFNS, and can produce nanofibers with excellent structure and performance, further improving the performance and application effect of the material. Future research can further explore the combination of electrospinning technology with other emerging technologies, such as nanotechnology and smart materials, to achieve more complex and sophisticated structural design and functional regulation. In addition, the electrospinning process parameters and material selection can be optimized to improve the biocompatibility, mechanical properties and functionality of nanofibers, and promote the clinical transformation and application of SFNS in the field of wound dressings.

Electrospinning Nanofibers Article Source:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acsami.2c20274