Methods to produce silk fibroin film biomaterials for applications in corneal tissue regeneration

Silk fibroin derived from the Bombyx mori silk worm cocoon offers a unique choice in biomaterial selection for uses in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. This is primarily due to fibroin's non-immunogenic response upon in vivo implantation; controllable material degradation rates; tunable mechanical properties; and ambient processing conditions. Silk fibroin films can be generated to produce simplified geometries with highly controlled material properties that offer substrates capable of successfully interfacing with biological systems. In addition, a variety of silk film processing methods exist to tailor these biomaterial properties to a given application. Current biomaterials for use in corneal tissue regeneration do not possess the range of material properties and processing combinations as offered by silk fibroin. Therefore, studies were carried out to assess silk fibroin film processing methods and in vitro corneal cell response to better characterize these biomaterials for use in cornea related applications. Processing methods were developed to generate silk film biomaterials with high resolution surface patterns, controllable film thickness and porosity, and ensured sterility. Silk films generated from these methods were found to support corneal fibroblast growth, guide cell and ECM alignment, and could be assembled to form 3D corneal tissue constructs. The results from these studies demonstrate that silk films offer a new option in biomaterial choice for the development of clinically relevant corneal devices to aid in tissue regeneration.