Biodegradable honeycomb collagen scaffold for dermal tissue engineering.

Tissue engineering requires a mechanically stable, biocompatible, and biodegradable scaffold that permits cell adherence and proliferation, allows preservation of cell-specific properties, and suitable for surgical implantations. In this study, honeycomb collagen sheet was used for three-dimensional (3D) cultures of human skin fibroblasts and characterized as an effective and suitable scaffold for dermal tissue engineering. About 1-mm-thick honeycomb collagen sheets, prepared from bovine dermal atelocollagen, cross-linked by UV-irradiation, and sterilized by heat, were placed on the proliferating fibroblasts on day 3 of the culture.

Type I collagen gene suppresses tumor growth and invasion of malignant human glioma cells.

Background: Invasion is a hallmark of a malignant tumor, such as a glioma, and the progression is followed by the interaction of tumor cells with an extracellular matrix (ECM). This study examined the role of type I collagen in the invasion of the malignant human glioma cell line T98G by the introduction of the human collagen type I alpha1 (HCOL1A1) gene.

Results: The cells overexpressing HCOL1A1 were in a cluster, whereas the control cells were scattered.

Differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells into osteoblasts on honeycomb collagen scaffolds.

Tissue engineering using living cells is emerging as an alternative to tissue or organ transplantation. The adult mesenchymal stem cells can be differentiated into multilineage cells, such as adipocytes, chondrocytes, or osteoblasts when cultured with specific growth factors. In the present investigation, we have studied the effect of honeycomb collagen scaffolds for the adhesion, differentiation and proliferation of bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cells into osteoblasts.

The role of atelocollagen-based cell transfection array in high-throughput screening of gene functions and in drug discovery.

The human genome project has been completed, but the function of many genes is unknown. It is, therefore, necessary to elucidate the function of a large number of genes within a short time. To achieve this goal, materials are needed that condense or package DNA into nano-particles that can easily be taken up by cells and would allow DNA to be retained without degradation.

Potential of atelocollagen-mediated systemic antisense therapeutics for inflammatory disease.

To study the possibility of using atelocollagen as an oligonucleotide (ODN) delivery carrier in vivo, the activity of formulated antisense ODN targeted against the intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) mRNA was investigated in an allergic dermatitis model in mice. The allergic dermatitis was elicited in one ear of animals sensitized by treatment with 2,4-dinitrofluorobenzene. Antisense ODN was given to the animals as a single intravenous injection of formulation containing atelocollagen.

Atelocollagen for protein and gene delivery.

Recent progress in recombinant gene technology and cell culture technology has made it possible to use protein and polynucleotides as effective drugs. However, because of their short half-lives in the body and the necessity of delivering to target site, those substances do not always exhibit good potency as expected. Therefore, delivery systems of such drugs are important research subjects in the field of pharmacology, and to prolong the effect of these drugs, many studies are being conducted to control the release of proteins and polynucleotides from various carrier materials.

Design of long-acting formulation of protein drugs with a double-layer structure and its application to rhG-CSF.

In order to design a sustained-release formulation of protein drugs characterized by excellent long-acting properties without an initial burst, a new double-layer minipellet (DL-MP) in which the lateral side of a matrix-type sustained-release formulation 'minipellet' using collagen as a carrier was coated with collagen was designed, and its performance was evaluated. In a DL-MP using bovine serum albumin (BSA) as a model drug, the initial burst observed with a single-layer minipellet (SL-MP) was effectively inhibited in an in vitro release test, and the addition of additives such as chondroitin sulfate (CS) permitted control of release rate. This formulation of recombinant human granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (rhG-CSF) was then prepared, and its characteristics were determined in normal rats.

In Vitro Orientation of Fibroblasts and Myoblasts on Aligned Collagen Film.

A collagen film in which the collagen fibers were aligned was prepared and characterized by scanning electron microscopy. Cell orientation on this film was studied in vitro using human fibroblasts and chick embryo myoblasts. Ninety-four percent of innoculated fibroblasts were aligned along the direction of the collagen fiber.