Silk sericin is a glycoprotein which surrounds and keeps two fibroin
filaments together. It is produced in the middle silk gland during the fifth instar of the
larval stage of the silkworm. During the process of degumming, sericin is removed
from the silk cocoon. This waste sericin has been discovered to have a wide variety of
applications as antioxidant, antityrosinase, wound healing, anti-wrinkle agents, etc.
Sericin from various silk cocoons was also found to have antimicrobial activity against
several fungal and bacterial pathogens. Sericin with antimicrobial activities can be used
in various applications such as in the preparation of wound healing gels, and the
treatment of fabrics for medicinal purposes. A particular study showed the application
of sericin as a coating material on polyester or polyamide fibres, to be used as media
for air filters. It reduces the free radicals in the filter media and contamination of fungi
and bacteria, thus helping in purifying the polluted air. Hence, the biodegradable and
biocompatible nature of silk protein sericin makes it a potentially promising substitute
of various antibiotics and certain other harmful antimicrobial agents that we use in our
daily life.
Keywords: Antibacterial, Antifungal, Antimicrobial, Silk, Sericin.
