RESUMO
Water soluble keratose proteins were obtained from an Ovis Aries wool using peracetic acid oxidation. The wool samples and the extracted keratose proteins were characterized by using FTIR, XRD, SEM and TGA techniques. Fractions of α-keratose (MWâ¯=â¯43-53â¯kDa) along with protein species with molecular weights between 23â¯kDa and 33â¯kDa were identified in the SDS-PAGE analysis result of the extracted protein mixture. DLS and AFM experiments indicated that self-assembled globular nanoparticles with diameters between 15â¯nm and 100â¯nm formed at 5â¯mg/ml keratose concentration. On the other hand, upon incubation of 10â¯w % keratose solutions at 37⯰C and 50⯰C, interconnected keratose hydrogels with respective storage modulus (G') values of 0.17⯱â¯0.03â¯kPa and 3.7⯱â¯0.5â¯kPa were obtained. It was shown that the keratose hydrogel prepared at 37⯰C supported L929 mouse fibroblast cell proliferation which suggested that these keratose hydrogels could be promising candidates in soft tissue engineering applications.