Heat denatured/aggregated albumin-based biomaterial: effects of preparation parameters on biodegradability and mechanical properties.

Albumin-based biomaterials prepared using heat-aggregation or cross-linking agents have been used in various biomedical applications such as solder materials for laser-assisted tissue welding, anti-bacterial coatings and drug carriers. In this study, solid albumin-based materials were prepared via heat aggregation of albumin solution. The study aimed to determine the influences of the preparation parameters such as albumin concentration in solution, solution pH and temperature, on the mechanical properties as well as the biodegradation rate of heat-aggregated albumin-based materials. The results demonstrated that the materials prepared from the albumin solution with the pH of 8.5 had the highest mechanical strength. Augmenting the albumin concentration in solution led to an increase in mechanical strength, and the materials prepared from the solution with isoelectric albumin pH (pH 4.8) possessed the lowest biodegradation rate and those prepared at pH 12 showed the highest biodegradation rate.