Preparation and properties of tannic acid cross-linked collagen scaffold and its application in wound healing

A biodurable porous scaffold of collagen with good biocompatibility and enhanced wound healing potential is prepared through casting technique using tannic acid (TA) as crosslinker. The morphological analysis of the tannic acid cross‐linked collagen scaffold (TCCs) distinctively shows scaly interlinks with large pores. The enzymatic stability of the scaffold is characterized in vitro to detail the role of TA in stabilization of collagen matrix against collagenolytic degradation. TCCs shows more stability (>54%) against collagenase than that of the collagen scaffolds (Cs). The attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared analysis of the TCCs confirms the noncovalent interaction between collagen and TA. The biocompatibility of the scaffold (TCCs) in vitro has been established using 3T3 fibroblasts. Therapeutic and wound healing potential of the TCCs has been studied in vivo using excision wound model in rats. The results clearly indicates that the TCCs has greater and significant effect in wound closure and increased the wound healing rate compared with native Cs. This biocompatible and biodurable scaffold may find broad applications in the tissue engineering and drug delivery applications. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2013.