A biodegradable hydrogel has been made based on high concentrations of whey protein isolate (WPI). WPI gels of different compositions were fabricated by thermally inducing gelation of high-concentration suspensions of protein, and characterized for compressive strength and modulus, hydration swelling and drying properties, mechanical behavior change due to polysaccharide additives, and intrinsic pore network structure. The gels were shown to be compatible with bone cells and could be used as bone tissue scaffolds. In addition, WPI fibers were produced by electrospinning. Several additives could be incorporated into the WPI gels, including structural additives, growth factors, amino acids, etc. The WPI hydrogels can be made with glycerol to increase flexibility and stability. The hydrogels could be used for tissue regeneration, food protection, controlled-release applications (including drug encapsulation, dietary supplement release, attractant release in lures, nutrient release to plants (fertilizers), column packing for compound separation, and membrane development.

Disclosed is a method for producing a protein fiber, the method including: bringing a spinning dope containing a protein and an organic solvent into contact with a coagulation liquid to coagulate the protein, wherein a content of the protein in the spinning dope is more than 10% by mass based on a total amount of the spinning dope, and the coagulation liquid contains water or an aqueous solution of pH 0.25 or more and pH 10.00 or less.

Disclosed is a method for producing a protein fiber, the method including: bringing a spinning dope containing a protein and an organic solvent into contact with a coagulation liquid to coagulate the protein, wherein a content of the protein in the spinning dope is more than 10% by mass based on a total amount of the spinning dope, and the coagulation liquid contains water or an aqueous solution of pH 0.25 or more and pH 10.00 or less.

The present disclosure provides methods and compositions for directed to synthetic block copolymer proteins, expression constructs for their secretion, recombinant microorganisms for their production, and synthetic fibers (including advantageously, microfibers) comprising these proteins that recapitulate many properties of natural silk. The recombinant microorganisms can be used for the commercial production of silk-like fibers.

The present disclosure provides methods and compositions for directed to synthetic block copolymer proteins, expression constructs for their secretion, recombinant microorganisms for their production, and synthetic fibers (including advantageously, microfibers) comprising these proteins that recapitulate many properties of natural silk. The recombinant microorganisms can be used for the commercial production of silk-like fibers.

Developed and provided is a method of collecting a large amount of high-quality bagworm silk threads having no contaminant from bagworm nests in a convenient manner and at low cost. The habit of bagworms is utilized to allow a bagworm to build a nest using solvent-soluble substances or thermally meltable substances as nest materials, followed by dissolving or melting the nest materials to separate the nest material from the bagworm silk threads, whereby only pure bagworm silk threads constituting the bagworm nest can be obtained.

The present invention provides a solid mask and a preparation method thereof. The solid mask includes a hydrophobic substrate layer and a nanofiber layer, the nanofiber layer has a three-dimensional structure and is electro-spun onto the hydrophobic substrate layer through uniaxial electrostatic spinning technology, and the nanofiber layer is prepared by the following food-grade raw materials in parts by mass: 10 to 30 parts of gelatin, 1 to 30 parts of soya bean lecithin and 0.1 to 10 parts of a functional substance. The present invention provides a solid mask, using gelatin and soya bean lecithin as the framework. The nanofiber layer is a three-dimensional laminate made of fibers having a diameter of a few hundred nanometers. The nanofiber layer has a membrane structure similar to the extracellular matrix. The raw materials of the solid mask are all food-grade raw materials or natural extracts.

The invention includes chitosan nanofibers having enhanced structural integrity, compositions comprising such chitosan nanofibers, and related methods of use. In a particular aspect, electrospun chitosan nanofibers can be reversibly acylated to enhance structural integrity and promote healing and the formation of tissues in a subject. In another aspect, electrospun chitosan nanofibers comprising at least a portion of the amino groups protected, such as through N-tert-butoxycarbonyl groups, demonstrate enhanced structural integrity and promote healing and the formation of tissues in a subject. The invention also includes compositions and methods for producing a modified chitosan material having anti-inflammatory and pro-healing characteristics and methods of using the modified chitosan materials in a film, a gel, a membrane, microfibers, nanofibers, nano- or micro-particles/spheres and/or sponges. In some aspects, microspheres and methods of producing microspheres comprising modified chitosan are included.

The invention includes chitosan nanofibers having enhanced structural integrity, compositions comprising such chitosan nanofibers, and related methods of use. In a particular aspect, electrospun chitosan nanofibers can be reversibly acylated to enhance structural integrity and promote healing and the formation of tissues in a subject. In another aspect, electrospun chitosan nanofibers comprising at least a portion of the amino groups protected, such as through N-tert-butoxycarbonyl groups, demonstrate enhanced structural integrity and promote healing and the formation of tissues in a subject. The invention also includes compositions and methods for producing a modified chitosan material having anti-inflammatory and pro-healing characteristics and methods of using the modified chitosan materials in a film, a gel, a membrane, microfibers, nanofibers, nano- or micro-particles/spheres and/or sponges. In some aspects, microspheres and methods of producing microspheres comprising modified chitosan are included.

Implantable scaffolds made from biopolymer fibers. Biopolymer is dissolved in acid in a closed container made of materials inert to the acid and to the collagen to form a biopolymer solution. The solution is stirred, then centrifuged to degas it. The degassed solution is put into syringes on a holder. The number of syringes equals the number of fibers in the bundle. The syringes are mounted in a rotatable holder. Essentially equal quantities of degassed solution are extruded from the syringes to produce fibers, which are gathered and fed into a formation buffer bath. The fibers are kept taught after extrusion and dehydrated in a dehydrating solution in a dehydrating bath. The fibers are wound a collector to collect the bundle. Scaffolds then are made.