A Facile Strategy for Preparing Flexible and Porous Hydrogel-Based Scaffolds from Silk Sericin/Wool Keratin by In Situ Bubble-Forming for Muscle Tissue Engineering Applications

Demiray E, Erkul HN, et al.

Macromolecular Bioscience

Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Ankara University

RESEARCH SUMMARY

This study introduces a silk sericin/wool keratin (SS/WK) hydrogel scaffold fabricated via an in situ bubble-forming EDC/NHS crosslinking reaction, producing a porous, flexible structure optimized for muscle tissue regeneration. Five hydrogel formulations (S2K1–S3K6) were evaluated for mechanical, morphological, and biological performance. The S4K2 composition achieved an elastic modulus of ~470 kPa, excellent cyclic resilience, and high C2C12 myoblast viability. CAM assays confirmed angiogenic potential, while enhanced MyoD and MyoG expression validated myogenic differentiation, positioning the S4K2 hydrogel as a promising biomaterial for skeletal muscle regeneration.

Mechanical testing of the hydrated SS/WK hydrogels was performed using a CellScale UniVert mechanical testing system (Waterloo, ON, Canada) with a 50 N load cell. Cylindrical hydrogel samples (4.3 mm diameter × 7 mm height) were subjected to uniaxial compression at 0.05 mm s⁻¹ up to ~90 % strain, followed by cyclic compression over 50 loading–unloading cycles. The UniVert data revealed that the S4K2 hydrogel maintained consistent elastic recovery and structural integrity, demonstrating muscle-like viscoelastic behavior essential for regenerative scaffold applications.

AUTHORS

Ebru Demiray, Hacer Nur Erkul, Hande Türe, Gökhan Erkan, Duygu Aydemir, Ayşegül Başak Bingöl, Ebru Şahin, Pınar Ergün.

PUBLICATION DETAILS

JOURNAL

Macromolecular Bioscience

YEAR

2025

INSTITUTIONS

Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Ankara University

COUNTRIES

Turkey

INSTRUMENT USED

UniVert

TESTING METHODS

Compression TestingViscoelastic & Time-Dependent Testing

RESEARCH APPLICATIONS

Hydrogel Mechanical TestingMusculoskeletal Tissue Engineering & MechanicsScaffold Mechanical TestingSkeletal Muscle & Volumetric Muscle Loss

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