Exploring the dual role of α,ω-di-carboxylic acids in the preparation of collagen based biomaterial

Di-carboxylic acids (DCAs), a precursor for many polyamides and polyester preparations, may also find applications in the preparation of high-performance biopolymer material for tissue engineering research. In the present study, collagen, a natural biopolymer when mixed with the chosen DCAs, through ionic interaction between R-COO^- and -NH₃ ⁺, dissolution as well as stabilization of collagen was achieved, which obviates the use of carbodiimide activation of -COOH groups of DCA. The DCA engineered collagen biopolymer material obtained in the form of 3D scaffolds was subjected to evaluate its high performance through in vitro and in vivo studies. Results on FT-IR, CD, TGA, DSC, SEM, mechanical properties, docking simulation studies and binding energy calculations explored the interactions and the in vitro cytotoxicity assays and in vivo wound healing studies explored and authenticated the performance of the DCA engineered biopolymer material and suggested the option for tissue engineering research.