Summary
Keratin extracted from poultry feathers - a waste stream of considerable volume - is characterised here in hydrolysed form and processed by electrospinning into structures for in vitro tissue models. The biomaterial was blended with type A porcine gelatin and cross-linked with GPTMS, first cast as films and then spun into fibres, with applied potential, flow rate and other parameters varied systematically. Comparing the two forms shows what the fibrous architecture adds beyond the material itself.
Authors & Affiliations
Linari Electrospinning Systems
Linari Engineering electrospinning system
The structures were produced on a Linari Engineering system (Pisa, Italy), varying the applied potential, the flow rate and the other process parameters to map the working window for this biomaterial. See our range of systems.