Rezaeivandchali, Noushin, Hebbard, Lionel, and McFarlane, Craig (2026) Collagen Biomaterials: From Traditional Animal Sources to Marine and Recombinant Alternatives. International Journal of Biomaterials, 2026. 7969177.

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Abstract

Collagen is the most abundant structural protein in animals and a key biomaterial due to its biocompatibility, biodegradability, and versatile functional properties. Traditionally, collagen has been obtained from land animal tissues such as bovine, porcine, and donkey skin, tendon, and bone. However, concerns regarding disease transmission, immunogenicity, and cultural restrictions have driven the exploration of alternative sources. Marine organisms, including fish, jellyfish, and sea cucumber, provide collagens that are widely reported to exhibit lower immunogenic responses compared with mammalian sources, alongside reduced zoonotic and prion-related safety concerns, although these observations are context-dependent and influenced by species origin, processing methods, and intended application. More recently, recombinant technologies using microbial and eukaryotic expression systems have emerged as innovative strategies to produce human-like collagens with tailored properties and improved safety. Together, these diverse sources expand the availability of collagen for a wide range of applications, from food and beverage systems to biomedical uses in tissue engineering, wound healing, and cosmetics. By outlining the advantages and limitations of land animal, marine, and recombinant collagen sources, this review highlights the growing importance of collagen as a multifunctional biomaterial and underscores the potential of emerging sustainable alternatives.

Item ID:	91048
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1687-8795
Keywords:	biomaterials; biomedical; collagen; cosmetics; food and beverage; land animal collagen; marine collagen; recombinant collagen
Copyright Information:	This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Copyright © 2026 Noushin Rezaeiv and Chali et al. International Journal of Biomaterials published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Funders:	Department of Education (DE)
Projects and Grants:	DE Australia's Economic Accelerator (AEA) Ignite grant
Date Deposited:	31 Mar 2026 23:37
FoR Codes:	31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3106 Industrial biotechnology > 310602 Bioprocessing, bioproduction and bioproducts @ 20% 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3101 Biochemistry and cell biology > 310113 Synthetic biology @ 40% 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3101 Biochemistry and cell biology > 310112 Structural biology (incl. macromolecular modelling) @ 40%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2001 Clinical health > 200103 Human pain management @ 10% 10 ANIMAL PRODUCTION AND ANIMAL PRIMARY PRODUCTS > 1099 Other animal production and animal primary products > 109999 Other animal production and animal primary products not elsewhere classified @ 40% 24 MANUFACTURING > 2499 Other manufacturing > 249999 Other manufacturing not elsewhere classified @ 50%
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