Phosphate-Driven Interfacial Self-Assembly of Silk Fibroin for Continuous Noncovalent Growth of Nanothin Defect-Free Coatings

Silk fibroin is a fiber-forming protein derived from the thread of Bombyx mori silkworm cocoons. This biocompatible protein, under the kosmotropic influence of potassium phosphate, can undergo supramolecular self-assembly driven by a random coil to β-sheet secondary structure transition. By leveraging concurrent nonspecific adsorption and self-assembly of silk fibroin, we demonstrate an interfacial phenomenon that yields adherent, defect-free nanothin protein coatings that grow continuously in time, without observable saturation in mass deposition. This noncovalent growth of silk fibroin coatings is a departure from traditionally studied protein adsorption phenomena, which generally yield adsorbed layers that saturate in mass with time and often do not completely cover the surface. Here, we explore the fundamental mechanisms of coating growth by examining the effects of coating solution parameters that promote or inhibit silk fibroin self-assembly. Results show a strong dependence of coating kinetics and structure on solution pH, salt species, and salt concentration. Moreover, coating growth was observed to occur in two stages: an early stage driven by protein–surface interactions and a late stage driven by protein–protein interactions. To describe this phenomenon, we developed a kinetic adsorption model with Langmuir-like behavior at early times and a constant steady-state growth rate at later times. Structural analysis by FTIR and photoinduced force microscopy show that small β-sheet-rich structures serve as anchoring sites for absorbing protein nanoaggregates, which is critical for coating formation. Additionally, β-sheets are preferentially located at the interface between protein nanoaggregates in the coating, suggesting their role in forming stable, robust coatings.