Resorbable polymer matrices: chitosan-substituted collagen-based biomaterials

Abstract Collagen-based resorbable biomaterials have attracted much attention in recent years due to their applications in tissue engineering and drug delivery. In this context, a significant amount of research activity has been devoted to developing new methodologies and products based on collagen. In addition, collagen has been subjected to additional processing to fabricate collagen-based devices and various forms of matrices. Collagen-based biomaterials are valuable because of their biocompatibility, bioresorbability, and biodegradability, as well as their ability to support tissue/cell adhesion and cell proliferation. The ideal biomaterial should have desirable mechanical strength. It should also be resorbable and be replaceable by mature extracellular matrix. Owing to the development of new processes and commercial possibilities, current research trends are focused on collagen-based resorbable biomaterials modified with various biomolecules. Therefore this chapter discusses the biomedical impact as well as advantages and disadvantages of collagen-based resorbable biomaterials substituted with chitosan and various synthetic polymers. Particular emphasis is given to the stimuli-responsive smart chitosan-substituted collagen-based resorbable biomaterials. Finally, various strategies and prospects to enhance the biomedical impact are discussed, as resorbable biomaterials’ smart and tunable functions of are expected to be extremely valuable in the future.