2. Academic Validation
  3. Production of recombinant human type I collagen homotrimers in CHO cells and their physicochemical and functional properties

Production of recombinant human type I collagen homotrimers in CHO cells and their physicochemical and functional properties

  • J Biotechnol. 2024 Nov 20:395:149-160. doi: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2024.09.011.
Chuan Wang 1,  Xiaolei Guo 2,  Mingtao Fan 1,  Long Yue 1,  Hang Wang 1,  Jiadao Wang 3,  Zhengqi Zha 4,  Hongping Yin 5
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 School of Life Science and Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, PR China.
  • 2 State Key Laboratory of Tribology, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China; Center for Medical Device Evaluation, National Medical Products Administration, Beijing 100081, PR China.
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Tribology, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, PR China.
  • 4 Nanjing DongWan Biotechnology Co. LTD, Nanjing 211899, PR China. Electronic address: zhazhengqi@cpu.edu.cn.
  • 5 School of Life Science and Technology, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing 210009, PR China; Recombinant Human Collagen Preparation Engineering Joint Laboratory, Nanjing 210009, PR China. Electronic address: yinhongping63@163.com.
PMID: 39357624 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiotec.2024.09.011
Abstract

Collagen is the most abundant protein in human and mammalian structures and is a component of the mammalian extracellular matrix (ECM). Recombinant collagen is a suitable alternative to native collagen extracted from animal tissue for various biomaterials. However, due to the limitations of the expression system, most recombinant collagens are collagen fragments and lack triple helix structures. In this study, Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells were used to express the full-length human type I collagen α1 chain (rhCol1α1). Moreover, Endo180 affinity chromatography and pepsin were used to purify pepsin-soluble rhCol1α1 (PSC1). The amino acid composition of PSC1 was closer to that of native human type I collagen, and PSC1 contained 9.1 % hydroxyproline. Analysis of the CD spectra and molecular weight distribution results revealed that PSC1 forms a stable triple helix structure that is resistant to pepsin hydrolysis and has some tolerance to MMP1, MMP2 and MMP8 hydrolysis. Atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed that PSC1 can self-assemble into fibers at a concentration of 1 mg/ml; moreover, PSC1 can promote the proliferation and migration of NIH 3T3 cells. In conclusion, our data suggest that PSC1 is a highly similar type of recombinant collagen that may have applications in biomaterials and Other medical fields.

Keywords

CHO cells; Functional characteristics; Recombinant collagen; Triple helix structure.

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