Green Marine Collagen-Chitosan Composites with Biocompatible, Hemostatic, and Pro-Healing Performance

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Regenerative Medicine
• Marine Biotechnology

Background:

• Developing sustainable wound dressings with enhanced biological performance is crucial.
• Marine biopolymers offer eco-friendly and bioactive alternatives to synthetic materials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To engineer composite films from marine-derived collagen and chitosan for improved skin repair.
• To evaluate the structural, physicochemical, and biological properties of these novel biomaterials.

Main Methods:

• Type I collagen from *Micropogonias furnieri* skin was incorporated into chitosan matrices (0%, 30%, 50%).
• Characterization included FTIR, polarized light microscopy, XRD, DSC, and biological assays (cytocompatibility, proliferation, scratch assays, hemocompatibility, genotoxicity).

Main Results:

• Composite films exhibited preserved collagen structure and increased amorphousness with higher collagen content.
• All formulations showed high cytocompatibility; 50% collagen composites significantly enhanced fibroblast metabolic activity and proliferation.
• Accelerated wound closure (nearly 90% in 48h), controlled oxidative environment, reduced coagulation time, and no genotoxicity were observed.

Conclusions:

• Marine collagen-chitosan composites are sustainable, biocompatible, hemostatic, and safe biomaterials.
• These materials demonstrate enhanced regenerative performance for advanced wound healing applications.