Effect of Yak Skin Gelatin with Different Molecular Weights on the Properties of Gelatin/Polymethyl Vinyl Ether-alt-maleic-anhydride Copolymer Composite Scaffold Material

Abstract

Gelatin has been extensively documented for its utility in tissue engineering applications. However, the exploration of yak skin gelatin as a novel gelatin source remains under-reported, particularly regarding the impact of varying molecular weights on the attributes of composite scaffold materials. This study investigates the distinctive behaviors of yak skin gelatin fractions with different molecular weights, assessing fundamental properties through electrophoretic analysis, thermodynamic property assessment, amino acid profiling, infrared spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy. Then, the polymethyl vinyl ether-alt-maleic-anhydride copolymer (PMVE-MA) was introduced to fabricate the composite scaffold materials. It was observed that the hemolysis rate escalated with increasing gelatin molecular weight. Additionally, properties such as platelet adhesion and mechanical stability exhibited a molecular-weight-dependent threshold behavior. Importantly, no cytotoxic effects were observed across all groups. Notably, scaffold materials fabricated by gelatin with a molecular weight range of 0.1-0.22 μm demonstrated superior mechanical strength and cell adhesion, positioning them as optimal candidates for biodegradable vascular scaffold applications.