Production of silk fibroin nanoparticles using ionic liquids and high-power ultrasounds

ABSTRACT Biopolymeric nanoparticles have attracted great research interest in the last few years due to their multiple applications. This article describes how high‐power ultrasounds are capable of enhancing the dissolution process of silk proteins in ionic liquids (ILs) and how silk fibroin nanoparticles (SFNs) can be obtained directly from the silk/ionic liquid solution (SIL) by rapid desolvation in polar organic solvents. The silk fibroin integrity is highly preserved during the dissolution process, as confirmed by sodium dodecyl sulfate‐polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE) of the SIL. These regenerated SFNs are insoluble in water and other common organic solvents and are indistinguishable from the classical SFNs with respect to their diameter (180 ± 5 nm), Zeta potential (−25 ± 3 mV), high degree of β‐sheet and low cytotoxicity. Large amounts of silk can be turned into biomaterials directly from the SIL solution for use in a wide range of applications, while the ILs can be recovered from the coagulant solution under reduced pressure and reused without loss of their solvent properties. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 41702.