From its Nature to its Function: Marine-Collagen-Based-Biomaterials for Hard Tissue Applications.

Abstract

Rapidly growing demand for collagen-based therapeutic applications requires a great amount of collagen stock. Commercial collagen is mainly confined to mammalian sources, which have concerns about zoonotic disease transfer and, additionally, the problem of terrestrial animals' overexploitation, which, even so, does not meet the crescent demand for collagen. The extraction of collagen from marine organisms, including the wastes of vertebrates and invertebrates, has both economic and environmental benefits. Marine collagen is easy to extract, has excellent biocompatibility and good absorption properties, is low in zoonotic and immunological risks for patients, and has fewer religious and regulatory restrictions. The present review discusses the research done using marine collagens on biomaterials for bone, cartilage, and osteochondral tissue regenerative applications and the underlying technologies that enable their development. The main challenges on processing marine collagen associated with specific features, such as the low denaturation temperature and weak mechanical properties, are also addressed. A combination of blends and physical or chemical crosslinking treatments with conventional processing methodologies are still traditionally used to prepare marine collagen biomaterials. However, the growing role of marine collagen in the healthcare-related field, particularly in the treatment of musculoskeletal defects, has been pushing the scientific community to explore advanced techniques to design and develop safe, yet functional materials to better meet tissues' functionality.