Study on Antheraea Pernyi Silk Fibroin Microspheres

A new ultrasonication-based method was developed to prepare Antheraea pernyi silk fibroin (ASF) microspheres. The ASF fiber was dissolved in aqueous lithium thiocyanate, and then microspheres were obtained by ultrasonic irradiation of ASF solutions. Surface tension test result showed that ASF had surface active and can significantly decline the surface tension of water. Therefore, under the action of ultrasonic waves irradiated, ASF microspheres can be prepared via mild self-assembling driven by hydrophobic interactions between silk fibroin protein molecules. The diameter of the ASF particles was in the range of 0.2 mu m to 1.6 mu m with a narrow size distribution. The structure of ASF microspheres was beta-sheet structure. The morphology of microspheres was observed by scanning electron microscope, transmission electron microscope and atomic force microscopy. The ASF microspheres might be suitable microcarriers for drug delivery.