Characterization and Cytocompatibility of Collagen–Gelatin–Elastin (CollaGee) Acellular Skin Substitute towards Human Dermal Fibroblasts: In Vitro Assessment

Abstract

Full-thickness skin wounds have become a serious burden to patients, medical care, and the socio-economic environment. The development of a safe and effective acellular skin substitute that can rapidly restore intact physiological skin is required. Natural bioactive materials including collagen, gelatin, and elastin possess significant advantages over synthetic biomaterials regarding biodegradability and biocompatibility. However, low mechanical strength, a faster biodegradation rate, and thermally unstable biomaterials lead to slow-healing and a high rate of post-implantation failure. To overcome these concerns, naturally occurring genipin (GNP) flavonoids were added to improve the mechanical strength, degradation rate, and thermal properties. Therefore, this study aimed to fabricate and characterize collagen–gelatin–elastin (CollaGee) biomaterials cross-linked with GNP as an acellular skin substitute potentially used in full-thickness wound healing. CollaGee at different ratios was divided into non-cross-linked and cross-linked with 0.1% GNP (w/v). The physicochemical, mechanical, and biocompatibility properties of CollaGee were further investigated. The results demonstrated that GNP-cross-linked CollaGee has better physicochemical (>50% porosity, pore size range of 100–200 µm, swelling ratio of >1000%) and mechanical properties (resilience and cross-linking degree of >60%, modulus of >1.0 GPa) compared to non-cross-linked CollaGee groups. Furthermore, both cross-linked and non-cross-linked CollaGee demonstrated pivotal cellular compatibility with no toxicity and sustained cell viability until day 7 towards human dermal fibroblasts. These findings suggest that GNP-cross-linked CollaGee could be a promising ready-to-use product for the rapid treatment of full-thickness skin loss.