• KSBB Journal
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.302-306
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• 2001

The possibility of biomaterials prepared from natural polymer as a skin substitute was evaluated by measuring biocompatibility. Biodegradable films were prepared by solution blend method in the weight ratio of chitosan for the purpose of useful biomaterials. These films were inserted in the back of rat and their biodegradability was investigated by the film weight and hematology as a function of time for the biotransformation. The result of rat test showed that medium, high viscosity chitosan induced some suspects of inbiocompatibililty in the tissue by foreign body reaction 48 and 72 hours after implantation. Also, we prepared the official burn ointment which is made by low viscosity chitosan. This burn ointment was covered on the skin wound of artificial burn and their effect of healing was investigated by the evaluation of the naked eye and hematological change as a function of time. The result of rats test showed that burn ointments made from chitosan was effective reduction of inflammation than negative group.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.27 no.5
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• pp.218-223
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• 2006

We examined the effects of ${\beta}$-glucan-reinforced PLGA film and scaffold on HDFs (human dermal fibroblast) attachment and proliferation. The PLGA films were prepared by simple solvent-casting method. The prepared films were grafted with $(1{\to}3)(1{\to}6)-{\beta}-glucan$ in various ratios after plasma treatment on surface. The surface of the film was characterized by contact angle measurement, scanning electron microscope (SEM), and Fourier-transform infrared spectrophotometer (FT-IR). The amount of $(1{\to}3)(1{\to}6)-{\beta}-glucan$ in the prepared film was indirectly determined by phenol-sulfuric acid method. The HDFs (Human dermal fibroblasts) were used to evaluate the cell attachment and proliferation on PLGA specimens before and after plasma/${\beta}-glucan$ treatment. The result showed that the plasma treated groups exhibited more mont of ${\beta}-glucan$ might be grafted than the non plasma treated groups. Cell attachment was significantly enhanced in the plasma/${\beta}-glucan$ grafted group after 4 hours incubation (p<0.05) due to the improved hydrophilicity and cytoactivity effect of the ${\beta}-glucan$. The cell proliferation of plasma/${\beta}-glucan$ (2mg/ml) grafted group was the highest rate among the groups (p<0.05).

• Polymer(Korea)
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.127-134
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• 2013

The vascular endothelial cells are the inner layers of blood vessels. It regulates the function of blood vessels and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells. Poly(lactide-co-glycolic acid) (PLGA) is a biodegradable synthetic polymer with a well-controlled degradation rate and an acceptable mechanical strength. It can be easily fabricated into many shapes. Silk consists of 18 amino acids. It found important for attaching cells cultured in vitro, and maintaining cell functions. In this study, we fabricated silk/PLGA biomaterial hybrid films of 0, 10, 20, 40 and 80 wt% silk. We performed MTT, SEM, ELISA, and immunocytochemistry analyses. We confirmed the adhesion and the proliferation of HAECs on silk/PLGA according to the content of silk, and 40 wt% silk/PLGA hybrid films have superior adhesion and proliferation properties. These results demonstrate that silk/PLGA hybrid films provide suitable surfaces for HAECs, and there is the effect of silk on cell growth and proliferation.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.16 no.3
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• pp.257-264
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• 1995

The $\beta$-chitin derivatives were synthesized by reacting $\beta$-chitin with chloropropane, propyleneoxide and chloropropane diol to form propyl chitin (PPC), hydroxypropyl chitin (HPC) and dihydroxypropyl chitin (DHPC), respectively. Cast films from $\beta$-chitin and $\beta$-chitin derivatives solutions degraded by Iyrozyme in pseudo-extrra cellular fluid (PECF) solutions, at pH1.2, pH6.7 and pH8.2. Chitin derivatives rapidly degraded compared with virgin $\beta$-chitin within the first week. DHPC showed the best biodegradation among these derivatives.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.59-71
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• 2018

Purpose: Cellulose nanocrystals (CNCs) are natural polymers that have been promoted as a next generation of new, sustainable materials. CNCs are invaluable as reinforcing materials for composites because they can impart improved mechanical, chemical, and thermal properties and they are biodegradable. The purpose of this review is to provide researchers with information that can assist in the application of CNCs extracted from waste agricultural byproducts (e.g. rice husks, corncobs, pineapple leaves). Methods & Results: This paper presents the unique characteristics of CNCs based on agricultural byproducts, and lists processing methods for manufacturing CNCs from agricultural byproducts. Various mechanical treatments (microfluidization and homogenization) and chemical treatments (alkali treatment, bleaching and hydrolysis) can be performed in order to generate nanocellulose. CNC-based composite properties and various applications are also discussed. Conclusions: CNC-based composites from agricultural byproducts can be combined to meet end-use applications such as sensors, batteries, films, food packaging, and 3D printing by utilizing their properties. The review discusses applications in food engineering, biological engineering, and cellulose-based hydrogels.

• Journal of Biomedical Engineering Research
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.89-96
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• 1994

The ether-type chitin derivatives were synthesized by reacting chitin with chloropropane, propylene oxide and chloropropane diol to form propyl chitin(PPC), hydroxypropyl chitin(HPC) and dihydroxypropyl chitin(DHPC). These derivatives formed a lyotropic cholesteric liquid crystallinity in concentrations over 30 wt% solution in formic acid (99%). Cast films from liquid crystalline solutions were degraded by lysozyme in pseudo-extra cellular tluid(PECF)solutions, at pH 1.2, pH 6.7 and pH 8.2. Three ether-type chitin derivatives rapidly degraded within the first week, and showed a decreased mechanical strength in neutral pH range. Dihydroxypropyl chitin showed the best biodegradation among these derivatives.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.25 no.7
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• pp.1270-1280
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• 2001

In this research of biodegradable polymers, it is essential to investigate the relation between biodegradability and molecular structure such as chemical constitution, hydrophilicity, molecular weight, crystallinity, chain orientation, and so on. It is also expected that hydrophilicity of polymer can affect biodegradability because biodegradation occurs with the help of enzymes and microorganisms. This study is to investigate the effect of hydrophilicity on biodegradability of polyesters. Hydrophilicity was varied by adding 5~30 mol% of amide groups, since amide groups are hydrophilic and used for improving thermal and mechanical properties. Surface energies and nitrogen contents by ESCA were measured to determine their hydrophilicity. The biodegradation was examined in activated sludge, enzyme and natural soil by $CO_2$evolution, TOC, weight loss, and observation through microscopy. The results showed that hydrophilicity of polyesteramide films increased with the addition of amide, PBAD series of shorter methylene units showed maximum hydrophilicity at 15~20 mol% of amide contents, but PBSE exhibited maximum values at 5~15 mol% of amide contents. The biodegradability increased as the hydrophilicty on surface increased. The biodegradation rate of PBAD series was higher than that of PBSE series. Therefore, it can be concluded that the addition of appropriate contents of hydrophile enhanced the biodegradability of aliphatic polyesters as well as their physical properties. Also, the experimental results revealed the relation between hydrophilicity and biodegradability of polyesteramides.

• Textile Coloration and Finishing
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• v.26 no.3
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• pp.159-164
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• 2014

Biodegradable Poly(butylene succinate), PBS, was photooxidized by UV/ozone irradiation and the effect of UV energy on the surface properties of the UV-irradiated PBS film were investigated by the measurement of reflectance, surface roughness, contact angles, chemical composition, and zeta potential. With increasing UV energy, reflectance decreased in the visible and ultraviolet regions particularly at the wavelength of 380nm. The irradiation produced nano-scale surface roughness including the maximum peak-to-valley roughness increased from 106nm for the unirradiated sample to 221nm at the UV energy of $10.6J/cm^2$. The improved hydrophilicity was due to the higher $O_{1s}/C_{1s}$ resulting from the introduction of polar groups such as C-O and C=O bonds. The surface energy of the PBS increased from $42.1mJ/m^2$ for the unirradiated PBS to $56.8mJ/m^2$ at the irradiation of $21.2J/cm^2$. The zeta potentials of the UV-irradiated PBS also decreased proportionally with increasing UV energy. The cationic dyeability of the PBS increased accordingly resulting from the improved affinity of the irradiated PBS surfaces containing photochemically introduced anionic and dipolar dyeing sites.

• Macromolecular Research
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• v.13 no.1
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• pp.73-79
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• 2005

Poly(L-lactic acid-co-succinic acid-co-l,4-butane diol) (PLASB) was synthesized by direct condensation copolymerization of L-lactic acid (LA), succinic acid (SA), and 1,4-butanediol (BD) in the bulk using titanium(IV) butoxide as a catalyst. The weight-average molecular weight ofPLASB was $2.1{\times}10^{5}$ when the contents of SA and BD were each 0.5 mol/100 mol of LA. Electrospinning was used to fabricate porous membranes from this newly synthesized bioabsorbable PLASB dissolved in mixed solvents of methylene chloride and dimethylformamide. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) images indicated that the fiber diameters and nanostructured morphologies of the electrospun membranes depended on the processing parameters, such as the solvent ratioand the polymer concentration. By adjusting both the solvent mixture ratio and the polymer concentration, we could fabricate uniform nanofiber non-woven membranes. Cell proliferation on the electrospun porous PLASB membranes was evaluated using mouse fibroblast cells; we compare these results with those of the cell responses on bulk PLASB films.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.24 no.5
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• pp.546-552
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• 1996

The applicability of chitosan, a biodegradable natural polymer, as the coating material to prevent the dispersal of the spores of the apple white rot agent Botryosphaeria dothidea, was investigated. The physical properties of mixed chitosan/polyvinyl alcohol(PVA) film showed the increased physical properties for film formation, such as tensil strength, elongation, and viscosity, compared to either chitosan or PVA film. The FT-IR spectra of chitosan/PVA film indicated that the film was formed by simple blending not by any new synthetic bond. The chitosan and chitosan/PVA film showed effective antifungal activity on B. dothidea. The formed films were well decomposed by ASTM strains used for biodegradability test, on the other hand, the PVA film could not be decomposed by above standard strains. The field test at apple orchard showed that the dispersal of B. dothidea spores could be effectively reduced by coated film, especially by chitosan/PVA film. The spore dispersal was reduced upto 97.0% by 1.0% chitosan/5.0% PVA film during 4 months.