Post-self-assembly experimentation on extruded collagen fibres for tissue engineering applications

• Published in: Acta biomaterialia 2008-11, Vol.4 (6), p.1646-1656
• Main Authors: Zeugolis, D.I., Paul, R.G., Attenburrow, G.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 2-Propanol - chemistry; Achilles Tendon - metabolism; Animals; Biocompatible Materials - chemistry; Biomimetics; Cattle; Collagen - chemistry; Extruded collagen fibres; Hot Temperature; Humans; Mechanical properties; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Post-self-assembly; Protein Denaturation; Stress, Mechanical; Structural characteristics; Temperature; Thermal properties; Tissue Engineering - methods
• ISSN: 1742-7061; 1878-7568
• DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2008.05.015

Extruded collagen fibres have been shown to constitute a biomimetic three-dimensional scaffold with numerous tissue engineering applications. The multi-step fabrication process of this material provides opportunities for further advancements to improve the properties of the final product. Herein we investigated the influence of the post-self-assembly washing baths on the structural, mechanical and thermal properties of these fibres. The surface morphology and the inter-fibre packing were similar for every treatment. The overnight incubation in isopropanol yielded fibres with the highest temperature and energy of denaturation ( p < 0.013). Typical s- and j-shape stress–strain curves were obtained for all treatments in the dry and wet state respectively. Rehydration of the fibres resulted in increased fibre diameter ( p < 0.006) and reduced stress ( p < 0.001), force ( p < 0.001) and modulus ( p < 0.002) values for every treatment. In the dry state, the alcohol-treated fibres were characterized by the highest stress ( p < 0.002) values; whilst in the wet state the Tris–HCl-treated fibres were the weakest ( p < 0.006). For every treatment, in both dry and wet state, a strong and inverse relationship between the fibre diameter and the stress at break was observed. Overall, the fibres produced were characterized by properties similar to those of native tissues.