Structural and mechanical behavior of type-I collagen fibrils in presence of induced electrostatic interactions through ionic liquids

Tuning the self-assembly of collagen has broad applications in the biomedical field owing to their desired biological performance as collagenous materials with tunable functionalities can further determine cellular responses. In this work, an attempt has been made to tune the self-assembly of collagen using ionic liquids, viz., imidazolium chloride (IC) and choline dihydrogen phosphate (CDHP) at its physiological pH, followed by probing assembled systems using various characterization methods. Turbidity measurements of fibrillar networks were performed to ascertain the rate of fibril formation in addition of imidazolium chloride and choline dihydrogen phosphate to collagen at physiological pH. Morphological changes were examined using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), binding affinities were measured by Microscale Thermophoresis (MST), in addition to, changes in the shear viscosity, mechanical strength of collagen fibrils when interacted with imidazolium and choline based ILs were carried out using rotational rheometer and Quartz Crystal Microbalance (QCM) measurements. Experimental result depicts that CDHP imparts better crosslinking as well as mechanical strength compare to IC, which is already known for destabilizing the triple helix structure is inhibiting the fibril formation. This self-assembled, ionic-liquid treated collagen-fibrillar system would accelerate various force modulated fibrillar network study, for mimicking the ECM and tissue engineering application.

Two-Stage Supramolecular Self-Assembly-Directed Collagen-Peptide-Decorated Liposomal Complexes of Curcumin Microspheres with Enhanced Solubility and Bioavailability

Green formulations of phytonutrients with enhanced solubility and bioavailability are of great significance in nutrition therapy. In the present contribution, we hypothesized that the collagen peptides could be a safe, natural, food-grade, and cost-effective functional agent for the surface decoration and stabilization of liposomes in powder form and hence a "green" solution for the oral delivery of phytonutrients. The present study reports a two-stage supramolecular self-assembly-directed process for the preparation of collagen peptide-decorated liposomal complexes of curcumin (CCL) [10% (w/w)] as microspheres (125 ± 25 μm) with improved solubility (1.46 × 10⁵-fold) and sustained-release properties under gastrointestinal pH conditions. The molecular self-assembly of collagen peptides around the lipid bilayers and the various noncovalent interactions and conformational changes leading to the supramolecular assembly to act as a matrix for the encapsulation of lipid vesicles of curcumin were clear from the spectroscopic studies (UV-vis, fluorescence, FTIR, and circular dichroism). Further investigation of pharmacokinetics following a randomized double-blinded controlled trial on healthy volunteers (n = 15) demonstrated that the oral administration of 2.5 g of CCL sachet (250 mg of curcumin) enhanced the plasma concentration (C_max: 118 vs. 4.3 ng/mL), the elimination half-life (4.2 vs. 0.7 h), and bioavailability as per the area under the curve over 12 h [AUC_0-12h (CCL) = 506·8 vs. AUC_0-12h (C95) = 9.47 (53-fold)], when the plasma concentration of curcumin was estimated with triple quadruple tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-ESI-MS/MS).

A ZnO-curcumin nanocomposite embedded hybrid collagen scaffold for effective scarless skin regeneration in acute burn injury

Scar formation in severe burn injury is a major health concern. Herein, we developed a hybrid collagen scaffold with an incorporated ZnO-curcumin nanocomposite, which facilitates scarless wound healing. Biocompatibility and hemocompatibility studies unveiled that the hybrid scaffold is apt for in vivo wound healing studies. Histological and immunohistochemical analyses demonstrate that the hybrid scaffold accelerated scarless burn wound healing in albino rats owing to the ZnO-curcumin nanocomposite induced up-regulation of angiogenesis and TGF-β3 expression. The semi-quantitatively measured scar elevation index of the hybrid scaffold-treated animals is on a par with that of the unwounded or normal skin. The studies suggest that the prepared hybrid biomaterial could be a potential candidate for scarless healing in severe burn injuries.

Exploiting oleuropein for inhibiting collagen fibril formation

Collagen fibrils accumulate in excessive amounts and impair the normal functioning of the organ; therefore it stimulates the interest for identifying the compounds that could prevent the formation of fibrils. Herein, inhibition of self-assembly of collagen using oleuropein has been studied. The changes in the physico-chemical characteristics of collagen on interaction with increasing concentration of oleuropein has been studied using techniques like viscosity, UV-vis, CD and FT-IR. The inhibitory effect of oleuropein on fibril formation of collagen was proved using SEM. Circular dichroism and FT-IR spectra elucidates the alterations in the secondary structure of collagen suggesting non-covalent interactions between oleuropein and collagen. The decreased rate of collagen fibril formation also confirms the inhibition in the self-assembly of collagen. Hence, our study suggests that inhibition of the self-assembly process using oleuropein may unfold new avenues to treat fibrotic diseases.

Fenugreek Incorporated Silk Fibroin Nanofibers-A Potential Antioxidant Scaffold for Enhanced Wound Healing

Free radicals are generated by various biochemical pathways in the living system, causing severe oxidative damage to the biomolecules leading to adverse disease conditions. Hence, there is an increasing interest in antioxidant studies for preventing the effects of these free radicals. Herein, we propose a novel electrospun scaffold with antioxidant properties that can be used as wound healing material. Fenugreek, a natural antioxidant incorporated silk fibroin nanofiber, was prepared in four different ratios by the co-electrospinning method. The biocompatibility of the nanofibers and its antioxidant activity were evaluated through 3-(4, 5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay and 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging assay, respectively. The experimental observations indicate that the incorporation of fenugreek increases the thermal and mechanical properties of silk fibroin nanofibers. DPPH assay proves that the antioxidant property is enhanced with increasing concentration of fenugreek in nanofiber mats, and the Swiss albino 3T6 fibroblasts show better proliferation on the nanofibrous scaffolds. Further, the wound healing efficiency of fenugreek incorporated silk fibroin nanofibrous scaffolds was evaluated using full thickness excisional wounds in rat model. Wound healing was accelerated in silk fibroin-fenugreek nanofibers treated wounds with complete re-epithelialization and enhanced collagen deposition. The present study validates the use of fenugreek incorporated silk fibroin nanofiber mats as antioxidant scaffolds in wound healing applications.

Processing, characterization and hemostatic mechanism of a ultraporous collagen/ORC biodegradable composite with excellent biological effectiveness

To overcome the hemostatic limitations, ultraporous Col/ORC composites were prepared in this paper.

An emulsion of pigmented nanoceria as a medicinal cosmetic

In this work, SnO₂functionalized graphene oxide was shown to possess high adsorption capacities and fast adsorption rates for organic dyes over wide pH ranges. Additionally, the adsorbent could be easily regenerated by washing with ethanol.

Synthesis, characterization and biological evaluation of chromen and pyrano chromen-5-one derivatives impregnated into a novel collagen based scaffold for tissue engineering applications

The synthesis of novel chromen and pyrano chromen-5-one derivatives (CCN) has obtained in simple experimental method. The CCN and collagen based scaffold showed excellent biological properties to act as biomaterial in tissue engineering application.