Biomedical applications of marine sponge collagens

Abstract

Collagens are the most abundant protein present in vertebrates and invertebrate organisms and play major roles in their structural organizations, body flexibility, and elastic properties. The major sources of collagen production are porcine and bovine origin, which are widely used for nutraceutical, pharmaceutical, and cosmeceutical developments for humankind. However, problems exist in transmissible diseases from bovine and porcine source like bovine spongiform encephalopathy disease. Thus, there is need to search some alternative source for collagen, likely fish and sponges. Marine sponge is a significant and unexplored source for collagen productions until now. Only few reports have been suggested that marine sponge collagen can be used for biological and biomedical applications (tissue engineering and drug delivery). Marine sponge collagens have a capacity for cell adhesion, ability to form pores, and capability to induce the osteogenic differentiation, which makes marine sponge collagen suitable for tissue engineering purpose. In the present chapter, we have discussed about isolation and use of marine sponge collagen in the form of bioscaffolds and nanoparticles in the areas of regenerative medicine and drug delivery, respectively. Recent technological methods have been provided for marine sponge collagen with biomedical applications, which makes marine sponge collagen an alternative source for industrial developments for the commercial usage.