Silk nanoparticle manufacture in semi-batch format

Matthew, Saphia A. L. and Totten, John D. and Phuagkhaopong, Suttinee and Egan, Gemma and Witte, Kimia and Perrie, Yvonne and Seib, F. Philipp (2020) Silk nanoparticle manufacture in semi-batch format. ACS Biomaterials Science & Engineering, 6 (12). pp. 6748-6759. ISSN 2373-9878 (https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.0c01028)

[thumbnail of Matthew-etal-ACSBSE-2020-Silk-nanoparticle-manufacture-in-semibatch-format]
Preview
 Text. Filename: Matthew_etal_ACSBSE_2020_Silk_nanoparticle_manufacture_in_semibatch_format.pdf
Final Published Version
License: Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 logo
Download (6MB)| Preview

Abstract

Silk nanoparticles have demonstrated utility across a range of biomedical applications, especially as drug delivery vehicles. Their fabrication by bottom-up methods such as nanoprecipitation, rather than top-down manufacture, can improve critical nanoparticle quality attributes. Here, we establish a simple semi-batch method using drop-by-drop nanoprecipitation at the lab scale that reduces special-cause variation and improves mixing efficiency. The stirring rate was an important parameter affecting nanoparticle size and yield (400 < 200 < 0 rpm), while the initial dropping height (5.5 vs 7.5 cm) directly affected nanoparticle yield. Varying the nanoparticle standing time in the mother liquor between 0 and 24 h did not significantly affect nanoparticle physicochemical properties, indicating that steric and charge stabilizations result in high-energy barriers for nanoparticle growth. Manufacture across all tested formulations achieved nanoparticles between 104 and 134 nm in size with high β-sheet content, spherical morphology, and stability in aqueous media for over 1 month at 4 °C. This semi-automated drop-by-drop, semi-batch silk desolvation offers an accessible, higher-throughput platform for standardization of parameters that are difficult to control using manual methodologies.

ORCID iDs

Matthew, Saphia A. L., Totten, John D. ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9665-1569, Phuagkhaopong, Suttinee, Egan, Gemma, Witte, Kimia ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4708-1621, Perrie, Yvonne and Seib, F. Philipp ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1955-1975;
CORE (COnnecting REpositories)