Characterization, Antibacterial and Anticancer Study of Silk Fibroin Hydrogel

Purpose: Protein-based hydrogels such as silk fibroin hydrogel, are used in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications as they showed striking characteristics like biocompatibility and offered various benefits as biomaterials. The current study sought to prepare silk fibroin hydrogel and characterise it in order to assess its antibacterial and anticancer activity. Methodology: Silk fibroin hydrogel was prepared and characterized by using different microscopy methods, namely Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Phase Contrast Electron (PCM) microscopy, and foldscope analysis. Further, it was characterized through 1H-NMR analysis, Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis, and swelling properties. A Current study also covers an antimicrobial and anticancer analysis of silk fibroin hydrogel by disk diffusion method and SRB (Sulforhodamine B) assay respectively. Results: The antibacterial study confirmed that SF hydrogel has a moderate antibacterial activity for Streptococcus mutans, and Salmonella typhi. Additionally, the SRB assay test showed that silk fibroin hydrogels had moderate anticancer activity against the human lung cancer cell line (A549). Conclusion: The current study unequivocally demonstrates that silk fibroin hydrogel has antibacterial and anti-cancerous properties, making it a suitable scaffold for future studies that seek to target a specific drug delivery site. Keywords: Silk fibroin; Swelling behaviour; Anticancer; Drug carrier; Wound healing