Characteristics of a self-assembled fibrillar gel prepared from red stingray collagen

A translucent collagen gel was formed from a transparent acidic solution of red stingray collagen by adjusting to physiological ionic strength and pH in phosphate buffer and then incubating at 25-37A degrees C. During fibril formation from red stingray collagen, the turbidity increased when the NaCl concentration was increased at constant pH and the rate of fibril formation was accelerated by higher pH or lower NaCl concentration. The T (m) of red stingray collagen fibrillar gel was estimated as 44.3 +/- A 3.5A degrees C, which was higher than that of the collagen solution, 33.2A degrees C. In addition, red stingray collagen gel maintained its shape without melting and was suitable for culture of mouse stromal cells at 37A degrees C.