Layer-wise fractionation and physicochemical characterization of sericin protein from tasar silk (Antheraea mylitta) cocoons

Abstracts Silk protein sericin, is glue in nature and gaining increasing attention for its biocompatibility, free radical scavenging and moisture-retention properties. Although, structural and functional characteristics of mulberry sericin have been studied well, limited information available for tasar sericin, with respect to layer specific differences within the cocoon. In this study, both outer and inner layer of sericin was separated from tasar (Antheraea mylitta) cocoons, and characterized. FESEM highlighted morphological differences in two-layer sericin. Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Thermographic analysis (TGA) and SDS-PAGE revealed distinct variations in confirmation, crystallinity, thermal stability and molecular weight distribution between two sericin’s. Chemical constituents indicate, outer layer sericin having higher phenolic and flavonoids than inner layer. Similarly, higher solubility, and hydrophilic amino acid contents were more in outer layer sericin. Functional evaluation suggested outer layer sericin exhibited comparatively higher antioxidant capacity, and glucosidase inhibition potential. The results indicates that tasar cocoon layer contribute unique sericin fractions with multiple properties, enabling utilization in biomedical, cosmetics, and biomaterials. The research sheds new light on structural and functional relationship of tasar silk sericin and signifies its potential for high value applications.