A General Strategy for Generating Gradients of Bioactive Proteins on Electrospun Nanofiber Mats by Masking with Bovine Serum Albumin.

ABSTRACT: Electrospun nanofibers are widely used in tissue engineering owing to their capability to mimic the structures and architectures of various types of extracellular matrices. However, it has been difficult to incorporate a biochemical cue into the physical cue provided by the nanofibers. Here we report a simple and versatile method for generating gradients of bioactive proteins on nanofiber mats. We establish that the adsorption of bovine serum albumin (BSA) onto nanofibers is a time- and concentration-dependent process. By linearly increasing the volume of BSA solution introduced into a container, a gradient in BSA is readily generated across the length of a vertically oriented strip of nanofibers. Next, the bare regions uncovered by BSA can be filled with the bioactive protein of interest.

SUBMITTER: Tanes ML 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5571829 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature