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Silk: An Amazing Biomaterial for Future Medication

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Natural Materials and Products from Insects: Chemistry and Applications

Abstract

Silk is one of the famous natural materials since ancient time due to its elegance and diverse applications. Two key proteins are hydrophilic: sericin and hydrophobic fibroin. It has unique properties like biodegradation, oxidation resistance, antibacterial and UV resistance which attract researchers. The variety of silk proteins has helped in the development of novel biomaterials and successful functioning in the treatment of various diseases. Silk proteins play an important role in the development of human tissues, skin development, regeneration of eye lenses, intervertebral disc, stem cells, nerve cells, ligament and biocompatible implants for sleep disc including anticancerous stuff. In the future, we can see more silk and its proteins based highly on advanced engineered biomaterials for the biomedical industries.

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Acknowledgements

Authors are indebted to Dr. D.S. Kothari Fellowship, BSR, UGC, New Delhi, India (grant No.F.4-2/2006 (BSR)/BL/17-18/0549), for the financial support.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. UNESCO Satellite Centre for Trace Element Research, School of Studies in Zoology, Jiwaji University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India

    Dhiraj Kumar, Sadhana Shrivastava & Sangeeta Shukla

  2. School of Biology and Basic Medical Science, Soochow University, Suzhou, China

    Chengliang Gong

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  1. Dhiraj Kumar
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  2. Sadhana Shrivastava
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  3. Chengliang Gong
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  4. Sangeeta Shukla
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. UNESCO Satellite Centre for Trace Element Research, School of Studies in Zoology, Jiwaji University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India

    Dhiraj Kumar

  2. School of Culture and Creative Arts, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK, Department of Fibers and Textile Processing Technology, Institute of Chemical Technology, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

    Mohammad Shahid

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Kumar, D., Shrivastava, S., Gong, C., Shukla, S. (2020). Silk: An Amazing Biomaterial for Future Medication. In: Kumar, D., Shahid, M. (eds) Natural Materials and Products from Insects: Chemistry and Applications. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-36610-0_3

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