Advanced Biofabrication of Functional Silk Fibroin Hydrogels for Tissue Engineering Applications

Hydrogels prepared from silk fibroin (SF) – a unique fibrous protein material, have attracted immense research interest in recent years due to their excellent mechanical properties, biocompatibility, and ease of blending with other materials. However, SF hydrogels prepared by traditional methods possess a simple network structure and single functionality featured mainly by passive support for cells, which severely restricts their utility in complex biological situations. Through the use of advanced fabrication techniques, the functionality of SF hydrogels can be expanded to meet a broad spectrum of applications. Examples of functionality include, but are not limited to, high-strength hydrogels (tensile/compressive strength/modulus > 1 MPa), adhesive hydrogels, and hydrogels with tuneable microstructure and shape. This thesis aimed at incorporation of these functionalities in SF hydrogels by employing novel fabrication techniques.