Pro-angiogenic photo-crosslinked silk fibroin hydrogel: a potential candidate for repairing alveolar bone defects

This study aimed to develop a pro-angiogenic hydrogel with in situ gelation ability for alveolar bone defects repair. Firstly, silk fibroin was chemically modified by Glycidyl Methacrylate (GMA) to obtain photo-crosslinkable silk fibroin. Next, scratch assay, transwell-based migration assay and angiogenic assay were conducted to investigate the effect of the photo-crosslinked silk fibroin hydrogel on the migration and tube formation behavior of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). Finally, subcutaneous implantation experiments were conducted to further examine the pro-angiogenic ability of the photo-crosslinked silk fibroin hydrogel. According to our results, it is concluded that the photo-crosslinked silk fibroin hydrogel possessed pro-angiogenic ability while inhibiting inflammation. Besides, the photo-crosslinking ability makes it suitable for matching irregular alveolar bone defects.