VISAKHAPATNAM: By using pure silk protein derived from cocoons, a team of investigators from TUFTS University School of Engineering (USA) has developed biomedical devices, particularly surgical plates and screws.
This was stated by TUFTS University tissue engineering and research centre director Prof. David Kaplan while delivering a lecture in an international e-conference on ‘Sericulture: Molecules to Materials’,” jointly organized by GITAM Deemed to be University seri-biotechnology lab and Andhra Pradesh State Sericulture Research and Development Institute (APSSRDI), Hindupur, on Monday.
Prof. Kaplan said that these silk-made tools not only offer improved bone remodeling but can also be absorbed by the body over a period of time.
Another big advantage of silk is that it can stabilize and deliver bioactive components, so that plates and screws made of silk can actually deliver antibiotics to prevent infection, pharmaceuticals to enhance bone regrowth and other therapeutics to support healing, he pointed out.
IIT Guwahati biomaterials and tissue engineering laboratory expert Dr. Biman B Mandal informed that by using Indian endemic silk they have developed smart wound dressings for diabetic foot ulcers, skin grafts for burn injuries, vascular grafts for by-pass surgery, vascularised bone grafts as orthopedic implants, beating cardiac patch for myocardial infarction, bio-artificial pancreas releasing insulin for type-1 diabetes, among others.
APSRDI director Dr. P.J. Raju said that the Indian silk industry was in need of the breeds which could yield consistent cocoon crops to suit the vagaries of tropical climate.
AP Sericulture Farmers Association president Venkatarami Reddy observed that the major constraint in sericulture industry is availability of labour and the farmer is expecting complete mechanization in sericulture activities.
Presently, 489-silkworm genetic resources are conserved in the gene bank through standard operating procedures (SOP) established for silkworm breeds.
