2.3. Preparation of gel-like chitosan–collagen (ChiCol) composite
The chitosan–collagen (ChiCol) composite was obtained by mixing the two solutions. No cross-linking occurred. Mixture of collagen (3 mg/mL of 1 × 10−3 M HCl) and chitosan (1 g/100 mL of 0.01 M HCl) having theweight ratio (Chi:Col=1:1) was prepared as a precursor for the fabrication. Neutralizing the mixture was done by adding NaOH (1 M) to the precursor blend at 4 °C. The final pH was kept at 7 (at this pH, gel like ChiCol formed). The neutralized ColChi hybrid gel was kept at 4 °C for further experimentation.