Articles - Green Reports

Abstract

Keratin protein is a versatile biopolymer having exceptional properties such as remarkable biocompatibility and biodegradability for various applications. Keratin possesses many distinct advantages over conventional biomolecules, due to its intrinsic cellular recognition, high sulfur content and propensity for self-assembly. Typically, kertain has been extracted from various biowaste sources including hair, fingernails, shells, horn, hooves, toenails, beaks, feathers and claws. So far, several methods for the extraction of keratin protein have been developed. The keratin proteins can be improved and modified in many forms such as gels, films, beads, nanoparticles, and microparticles. After modification, its uses in various industries such as pharmaceuticals, cosmetic, food science and green chemistry is exceptional. Particularly, in recent years, research on the production of keratin has greatly increased due to the abundance of potential applications. The research and development of keratin protein are still continues to expand. The most important driving forces for this development are the increasing demand of this cost-effective keratin material. Hence, in this review, we mainly focus on the applications of keratin nanocomposites. In addition, part of this review focuses on the preparation methodologies and characterization techniques of the extracted keratin and keratin-based nanocomposites.