Comparison of Gelatin and Collagen Scaffolds for Fibroblast Cell Culture

Gelatin and collagen were used to produce the scaffold for fibroblast cell culture. The properties of scaffolds obtained from type A and type B gelatin were compared to scaffold obtained from collagen, which is widely used in skin substitute. Porous scaffolds were prepared by freeze drying and dehydrothermal (DHT) crosslinking method. DHT treatment time was performed at 24 and 48 h and the degree of crosslinking was determined by 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulphonic acid (TNBS). The morphology of scaffolds was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The compressive modulus and swelling ratio of the scaffolds were reported. To confirm the applicability of the scaffolds as a skin substitute, in vitro cell adhesion and cell proliferation tests were employed in this study. The gelatin scaffolds showed comparable properties, especially cell proliferation, to those of collagen scaffolds but the rapid degradation rate of gelatin was the limiting factor of using gelatin in wound healing. However, gelatin scaffolds could be modified to reduce the degradation rate and used substitute collagen scaffold to reduce the cost of materials for scaffold fabrication.