Feasibility Study of Tissue Transglutaminase for Self-Catalytic Cross-Linking of Self-Assembled Collagen Fibril Hydrogel and Its Promising Application in Wound Healing Promotion

Abstract

Collagen-based bio-hydrogels are undoubtedly a hot spot in the development of biological dressings for wound healing promotion. Herein, glutamine transaminase (TGase), a biological nontoxic cross-linker with high specific activity and reaction rate under mild conditions, was utilized for the self-catalytic cross-linking of the regenerated collagen (COL) fibril hydrogel fabricated through a molecular self-assembly method. The results showed that the natural triple helical conformation of COL remained completely integrated after self-catalytic cross-linking TGase, which was definitively the fundamental for maintaining its superior bioactivity. It was worth noting that TGase could promote the self-assembly process of COL building blocks into a higher order D-period cross-striated structure. Also, the reconstructed TGase cross-linked COL fibrils exhibited a higher degree of interfiber entanglements with more straight and longer fibrils. Meanwhile, the thermal stability of COL was significantly improved after introducing TGase. Besides, the cytocompatibility analysis suggested that the regenerated COL fibril hydrogel showed excellent cell growth activity and proliferation ability when the dosage of TGase is less than 40 U/g. Further, animal experiments indicated that the targeted COL fibril hydrogel could significantly promote skin wound healing, exhibiting better capacity of skin tissue for regeneration than the COL hydrogel untreated as expected. Therefore, the reconstructed TGase cross-linked COL fibril hydrogel could serve as a novel soft material for wound healing promotion.

Bioprinting of Collagen: Considerations, Potentials, and Applications

“…[62] "Biological" nontoxic crosslinker, TG, has advantages over chemical crosslinkers as it shows greater specificity, milder reaction condition, and higher biodegradability. [63][64][65] As discussed in the previous section, TG is involved in in vivo crosslinking processes to assist collagen assembly. Reconstituted TG-crosslinked collagen did not increase the denaturation temperature despite showing stabilization of triple helix.…”

A review on the production, structure, bioactivities and applications of Tremella polysaccharides

“…Tremella polysaccharide can be used as a natural moisturizer to relieve skin dehydration, repair the skin barrier and maintain skin health. 74 The desorption kinetic simulation method was used to study the moisture content stability and characteristics of Tremella polysaccharides obtained under different drying conditions, and the results showed that the Tremella polysaccharides obtained by each drying method had good moisturising and hygroscopic ability. 75 Tremella polysaccharides can reduce the photo-damage of skin caused by ultraviolet rays.…”

“…Tremella polysaccharide can be used as a natural moisturizer to relieve skin dehydration, repair the skin barrier and maintain skin health. 74 …”

Recent advancements in enzyme-mediated crosslinkable hydrogels: In vivo-mimicking strategies

“…Jiang et al developed collagen-fibril hydrogel crosslinked by transglutaminase for skin regeneration. 55 When 40 U/g of transglutaminase was treated to collagen, transglutaminase efficiently made collagen self-assembled. Jiang et al demonstrated that the thermostability of collagen fibrils could be increased by adjusting the transglutaminase concentration, varying the thermal denaturation temperature from 60.6 (collagen only) to 82.8 °C (with 80 U/g of transglutaminase).…”