Potential of oxazolidines and zirconium oxalate crosslinkers on the hydrothermal and thermo-mechanical stability of collagen fiber

Collagen, a unique connective tissue protein finds extensive application as prosthesis, artificial tissue, drug carrier, cosmetics and leather industry. This work has been undertaken to stabilize collagen using oxazolidine and zirconium oxalate as crosslinking agents. It has been found that both oxazolidine and zirconium oxalate imparts thermal stability to collagen, and oxazolidine exhibits a marked rise in the peak temperature when compared to both native and zirconium oxalate tanned collagen. On the other hand, zirconium does not seem to alter the tensile strength of collagen fibers significantly in wet condition as well as oxazolidine. The study is expected to enhance the biomaterial applications of collagen tissues.