Silk-Based Biopolymers Promise Extensive Biomedical Applications in Tissue Engineering, Drug Delivery, and BioMEMS

As an FDA-approved biopolymer, silk has been contemplated for a wide range of applications based on its unique merits, such as biocompatibility, biodegradability, and piezoelectricity. As silk, in both crystalline structure and amorphous state, exhibits unique physical, mechanical, and biological properties (promoting cell migration, differentiation, growth, and protein-surface interaction), it is fruitful to understand its potential applications. Sensors, actuators, and drug delivery systems are the best in case. As such, the current effort first introduces silk fibroin (SF) and delineates its characteristics. It then explores the extensive use of this biomaterial in tissue engineering approaches, in addition to its biosensor and electro-active wearable bioelectronic application. To this end, the SF application in cardiovascular, skin, cartilage, and drug delivery systems for cancer therapy and wound healing was studied precisely. Compositing any type of other variables to induce a specific application or improve any SF barriers, namely its hydrophobicity, poor electrical conductivity, or tuning its mechanical properties, especially in tissue engineering applications, has also been discussed wherever it is deemed informative.</p

The effect of thermomechanical processing on the piezoelectric and electrical conductivity of PLA/2.5%MWCNT composite

The electrical properties of polymer materials, such as electrical conductivity and piezoelectricity, are significantly influenced by the ratio of amorphous to crystalline regions. Additionally, the alignment of added particles and formed crystallites is another factor that affects these properties. Conversely, a well-designed thermomechanical process can significantly impact the rate of change. This study investigates nanocomposite production with an optimal percentage of modified nanoparticles using a revamped electrospinning process and fully effective post-processing. Piezoelectric constant d33 of PLLA-2.5%CNT discussion was pioneered in this article. It was proved that the crystallinity percentage of nanocomposites can be improved by up to 70% by applying a suitable thermomechanical process and adding a suitable percentage of particles. The formation of the ordered phase, the creation of a special pattern for the movement of electrons, and the change in the conformation of the carbonyl group are the reasons for increasing the piezoelectric constant from 0.2 to 3 and increasing the electrical conductivity by 1000 orders of magnitude. Among other reasons, we can mention the alignment increment of polymer particles and crystallites and their way of texturizing in order to apply thermomechanical processing