Collagen biology for bone regenerative surgery

Collagen is widely used for regenerative therapy and pharmaceutical applications as one of the most useful scaffolds. Collagen is the most abundant protein in vertebrates and the natural substrate of various types of animal cells. Bone and dentin are mineralized tissues and almost similar in chemical components. They consist of collagen (18%), non-collagenous proteins (2%), hydroxyapatite (70%) and body fluid (10%) in weight volume. Pepsin-digested, type I collagen (atelocollagen) and heat-denatured collagen (gelatin) are basic collagenous materials for medical use. Demineralized dentin matrix (DDM) and demineralized bone matrix (DBM) belong to acid-insoluble group, and vital tooth-derived DDM is a unique dentin material including cementum and growth factors. In this review, collagen-based materials will be introduced and discussed for bone regenerative surgery.