A novel nanocomposite based on Collagen-raffinose hydrogel, embedded with carbon nitride nanosheets and ZnFe layered double hydroxides with less toxicity, antibacterial activity and enhanced mechanical properties

Recently, natural-based hydrogels with three dimensional networks have been investigated significantly due to their unique properties such as swelling capacity, biocompatibility, biodegradability, tunable mechanical properties and chemical stability. Other than natural polymers, natural macromolecules can be also used for preparation of natural hydrogels. In this study, two of the most studied natural polymers and macromolecules, collagen and raffinose were used to prepare collagen-raffinose hydrogel. In following, in order to enhance the hydrogels mechanical properties and adding antibacterial properties, g-C₃N₄ and MnFe LDH were added to the structure and the Coll-Raff hydrogel/g-C₃N₄/ZnFe LDH nanobiocomposite was prepared. This nanobiocomposite was subjected to TGA, EDX, FE-SEM, FT-IR and XRD characteristic investigations and biological assessments of MTT and anti-biofilm activity assays. Mechanical properties of the Coll-Raff hydrogel/g-C₃N₄/ZnFe LDH was also studied. 95.61%, 91.25% and 86.21% cell viability were obtained within 24h, 48h and 72h, respectively. Also, a viscoelastic material was observed with antibacterial activity against P. aeruginosa, showing this nanobiocomposite capability as a good candidate for wound healing and tissue engineering applications.