Collagen is the main structural protein in vertebrates. It plays an essential role in providing a scaffold for cellular support and thereby affecting cell attachment, migration, proliferation, differentiation, and survival. Natural animal collagen and its recombinant collagen are favorable replacements in human tissue engineering due to their remarkable biomedical property. However, this exploitation is largely restricted due to the potential of immunogenicity and virus contamination. The recent development of recombinant sources of human collagen provides a reliable, predictable and chemically defined source of purified human collagens that is free of animal components.
Uses of Recombinant Human Collagen
Due to its good biocompatibility, low immunogenicity, stabilized property, recombinant human collagen has been widely used in tissue engineering (such as vascular scaffolds engineering, cartilage, bone defect repair), skin injury treatment, drug delivery, etc. [1].
The production of recombinant human collagen enables the engineering of human tissue based on a human matrix or scaffold. Recombinant human collagens are an efficient scaffold for bone repair when combined with a recombinant bone morphogenetic protein in a porous, sponge-like format, and when presented as a membrane, sponge or gel can serve as a basis for the engineering of skin, cartilage and periodontal ligament [2].
Recombinant human collagen can be used in skin injury treatment. For instance, Liu [3] prepared a new hydrogel by using recombinant human collagen type III powder as a raw material to repair and regenerate skin wound. The results showed that the hydrogels exhibited good water retention properties and a suitable degradation rate, which can promote the proliferation and migration of wound healing-related cells in vitro, while reducing scar formation.
Recombinant human collagen can be used in drug delivery system. For instance, Didem [4] proved that the presented recombinant human collagen type I microspheres are promising versatile BMP-2 (bone morphogenetic protein-2) delivery vehicles.
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References
- Zhuoyue Chen, Daidi Fan, Lijun Shang. Exploring the potential of the recombinant human collagens for biomedical and clinical applications: a short review. Biomed Mater. 2020 Dec 12;16(1).
- Yang, C., Hillas, P. J., Baez, J. A., et al. The Application of Recombinant Human Collagen in Tissue Engineering. BioDrugs, 2004, 18(2), 103–119.
- Tong Liu, Chao Qiu, Hao Lu, et al. A novel recombinant human collagen hydrogel as minced split-thickness skin graft overlay to promote full-thickness skin defect reconstruction. Burns, 2023 Feb;49(1):169-181.
- Mumcuoglu, D., de Miguel, L., Jekhmane, S., et al. Collagen I derived recombinant protein microspheres as novel delivery vehicles for bone morphogenetic protein-2. Materials Science and Engineering: C, 2018, 84, 271–280.
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