Keratins are a family of fibrous proteins anticipated to possess wide-ranging biomedical applications due to their abundance, physicochemical properties and intrinsic biological activity. This review mainly focuses on the biomaterials derived from three major sources of keratins; namely human hair, wool and feather, that have effective applications in tissue engineering, wound healing and drug delivery. This article offers five viewpoints regarding keratin i) an introduction to keratin protein extraction and keratin-based scaffold fabrication methods ii) applications in nerve and bone tissue engineering iii) a review on the keratin dressings applied to different types of wounds to facilitate wound healing and thereby repair the skin iv) the utilization of keratinous materials as a carrier system for therapeutics with a controlled manner v) a discussion regarding the main challenges for using keratin in biomedical applications as well as its future prospects.

角蛋白是一类纤维蛋白，由于其丰度，理化特性和内在的生物学活性而被认为具有广泛的生物医学应用。这篇综述主要侧重于来源于三种主要角蛋白来源的生物材料。即人的头发，羊毛和羽毛，在组织工程，伤口愈合和药物输送中具有有效的应用。