Biomedical materials | 2019
Crosslinked starch nanofibers with high mechanical strength and excellent water resistance for biomedical applications.
Abstract
The hydrophilic property and poor water resistance prevent the application of starch in electrospun nanofibers for biomedical applications. In this manuscript, we apply the periodate oxidation - adipic acid dihydrazide crosslinking strategy to electrospun starch nanofibers and develop a new nanofiber material with excellent mechanical strength, superior water resistance, and excellent cytocompatibility. The crosslinked starch nanofiber membranes exhibit Young s modulus up to 2.65 MPa at wet state, can maintain 91.0% of their initial mass after 4 weeks incubation in simulated body fluid, and do not cause toxicity to L929 fibroblast cells. The control nanofibers prepared with conventional glutaraldehyde crosslinking strategy show only 60 kPa Young s modulus, retain only 31.9% of their initial mass after 4 weeks in simulated body fluid, and cause toxicity to cells. The crosslinked starch nanofibers with high mechanical strength, excellent water resistance and good biocompatibility are promising for biomedical applications.