gelatin is obtained by a controlled hydrolysis from the fibrous insoluble protein collagen. Being a protein, gelatin is composed of a unique sequence of amino acids. Characteristic features of gelatin are the high content of the amino acids glycine, proline and hydroxyproline. Since formaldehyde crosslinks amino groups, the 2,4,6-trinitrobenzene sulfonic acid (TNBSA or TNBS) assay can be effectively utilized for determination of complete crosslinking of gelatin with analysis of free amino acid content. TNBSA reacts with primary amines to form a highly chromogenic derivative, which can be measured at 335nm. You can find the protocol here: