26. February 2026
Enzymatic Crosslinking of Gelatin: How Andracon® MTG Enables Tunable, Physiologically Compatible Hydrogels
The Application Note “Gelatin Crosslinking with Microbial Transglutaminase: Viscoelastic Characterization” was prepared by Maya Salame and Dimitria Camasao from Rheolution Inc., in collaboration with Zedira and Rousselot Biomedical.
It explores how Andracon® (Microbial Transglutaminase, MTG) enables precise, efficient, and reproducible crosslinking of X Pure Gelatin® (ultra-purified clinical grade gelatin), and how the ElastoSens™ Bio platform provides real time insight into gelation kinetics and final mechanical performance.
Gelatin is widely used in biomaterials research due to its biocompatibility and ease of processing. Gelatin forms a hydrogel that is ideal for cell growth and regenerative purposes however, due its thermally reversible nature and melting point below body temperature, the hydrogel requires crosslinking to maintain stability at physiological temperatures. Enzymatic crosslinking with Andracon® addresses this challenge by creating covalent bonds under mild, aqueous conditions - yielding stable hydrogels suitable for biomedical applications.
Using ElastoSens™ Bio, the authors monitored gelatin crosslinking continuously over time, evaluating how gelatin concentration, enzyme dose, and temperature influence both gelation kinetics and final hydrogel properties. The resulting dataset not only validates Andracon® as a robust crosslinker but also highlights the power of non destructive rheological monitoring for formulation development.
Across all conditions, Andracon® demonstrated strong control over network formation. Increasing gelatin concentration (5–15 wt%) produced markedly stiffer hydrogels and accelerated the liquid–gel transition. Similarly, higher Andracon® loading (15 vs. 30 U/g gelatin) significantly boosted the final shear storage modulus and reduced both gelation time and time to plateau - showing that enzymatic activity is a dominant driver of crosslinking speed and gel maturation.
A key practical insight is that crosslinking at 37 °C and 45 °C resulted in comparable final mechanical properties, confirming that Andracon® reliably produces stable hydrogels even at physiological temperature. Although some thermal gelation may occur at 37 °C, the endpoint viscoelastic signature remained consistent, underscoring the enzyme’s process reliability and translational relevance.
ElastoSens™ Bio played a central role by capturing the full mechanical evolution of each formulation -tracking G', G", tan δ, gel point, and stabilization time. This real time approach provides a level of resolution that is critical for optimizing biomaterial performance, supporting both early stage research and quality controlled production.
In summary, Zedira’s microbial transglutaminase Andracon® enables controlled, stable, and tunable gelatin crosslinking using X Pure Gelatin®, while ElastoSens™ Bio makes these performance characteristics measurable, comparable, and scalable. Together, they offer a powerful toolkit for researchers and developers who require high quality, reproducible gelatin based hydrogels for preclinical, translational, or manufacturing applications.
The full Application Note can be accessed on the Rheolution website:
https://rheolution.com/application-notes/gelatin-crosslinking-with-microbial-transglutaminase/
It explores how Andracon® (Microbial Transglutaminase, MTG) enables precise, efficient, and reproducible crosslinking of X Pure Gelatin® (ultra-purified clinical grade gelatin), and how the ElastoSens™ Bio platform provides real time insight into gelation kinetics and final mechanical performance.
Gelatin is widely used in biomaterials research due to its biocompatibility and ease of processing. Gelatin forms a hydrogel that is ideal for cell growth and regenerative purposes however, due its thermally reversible nature and melting point below body temperature, the hydrogel requires crosslinking to maintain stability at physiological temperatures. Enzymatic crosslinking with Andracon® addresses this challenge by creating covalent bonds under mild, aqueous conditions - yielding stable hydrogels suitable for biomedical applications.
Using ElastoSens™ Bio, the authors monitored gelatin crosslinking continuously over time, evaluating how gelatin concentration, enzyme dose, and temperature influence both gelation kinetics and final hydrogel properties. The resulting dataset not only validates Andracon® as a robust crosslinker but also highlights the power of non destructive rheological monitoring for formulation development.
Across all conditions, Andracon® demonstrated strong control over network formation. Increasing gelatin concentration (5–15 wt%) produced markedly stiffer hydrogels and accelerated the liquid–gel transition. Similarly, higher Andracon® loading (15 vs. 30 U/g gelatin) significantly boosted the final shear storage modulus and reduced both gelation time and time to plateau - showing that enzymatic activity is a dominant driver of crosslinking speed and gel maturation.
A key practical insight is that crosslinking at 37 °C and 45 °C resulted in comparable final mechanical properties, confirming that Andracon® reliably produces stable hydrogels even at physiological temperature. Although some thermal gelation may occur at 37 °C, the endpoint viscoelastic signature remained consistent, underscoring the enzyme’s process reliability and translational relevance.
ElastoSens™ Bio played a central role by capturing the full mechanical evolution of each formulation -tracking G', G", tan δ, gel point, and stabilization time. This real time approach provides a level of resolution that is critical for optimizing biomaterial performance, supporting both early stage research and quality controlled production.
In summary, Zedira’s microbial transglutaminase Andracon® enables controlled, stable, and tunable gelatin crosslinking using X Pure Gelatin®, while ElastoSens™ Bio makes these performance characteristics measurable, comparable, and scalable. Together, they offer a powerful toolkit for researchers and developers who require high quality, reproducible gelatin based hydrogels for preclinical, translational, or manufacturing applications.
The full Application Note can be accessed on the Rheolution website:
https://rheolution.com/application-notes/gelatin-crosslinking-with-microbial-transglutaminase/
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