Abstract
Collagen-based hydrogels are investigated extensively in tissue engineering for their tunable physiochemical properties, biocompatibility and biodegradability. However, the effect of the integrity of the collagen triple helical structure on biodegradability is yet to be studied. In this study, we monitored the degradation of intact collagen (C-coll) and hydrolyzed collagen (D-coll) hydrogels in collagenase Clostridium histolyticum to understand their degradation process. Our results show that when peptides are present on the surface of the fibrils of D-coll hydrogels, cleavage of amide bonds occur at a much higher rate. The fibrillar structure of D-coll hydrogel results in a more pronounced breakdown of the gel network and dissolution of collagen peptides. The results from this work will improve the understanding of enzymatic degradation and the resulting bioabsorption of collagen materials used in drug delivery systems and scaffolds.
Highlights
IntroductionHydrogels are networks of hydrophilic polymers that are commonly used in biomedical applications including tissue engineering, wound dressings and carriers for drug delivery systems [1]
Hydrogels are networks of hydrophilic polymers that are commonly used in biomedical applications including tissue engineering, wound dressings and carriers for drug delivery systems [1].As the most abundant structural protein in animal extracellular matrices, collagen can be made into hydrogels with excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability [2]
It is important to understand the kinetics of the biodegradation of collagen hydrogels to precisely control the performance for various biomedical applications
Summary
Hydrogels are networks of hydrophilic polymers that are commonly used in biomedical applications including tissue engineering, wound dressings and carriers for drug delivery systems [1]. As the most abundant structural protein in animal extracellular matrices, collagen can be made into hydrogels with excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability [2]. For applications such as scaffolds and drug carriers, controllable biodegradability and bioabsorbability in vivo are crucial to the overall performance of the hydrogels [3,4]. When used in the delivery of drug molecules or growth factors, the biodegradability of the hydrogels can be controlled to maintain the integrity of its network structure or allowed to degrade, depending on the desired sustained release rate [4]. It is important to understand the kinetics of the biodegradation of collagen hydrogels to precisely control the performance for various biomedical applications
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