Suture pullout strength and in vitro fibroblast and RAW 264.7 monocyte biocompatibility of genipin crosslinked nanofibrous chitosan mats for guided tissue regeneration.

Guided tissue regeneration (GTR) is a surgical technique used to direct the formation of bone in the graft space by protecting it with a barrier membrane used to exclude soft tissues during healing. Chitosan has been advocated for GTR applications because of its biocompatibility, degradability, wound healing, and osteogenic properties. In this study, electrospun chitosan membranes, crosslinked with 5 mM or 10 mM geinipin, a natural crosslinker extracted from the gardenia plant, were evaluated for suture pullout strength, crystallinity, and cytocompatibility with normal human dermal fibroblast and TIB 71™ RAW 264.7 monocyte cells. Ultimate suture pullout strength was significantly lower (51-67%) than that of commercially available collagen membranes. Crystallinity of the electrospun chitosan mats decreased upon crosslinking by 14-17% (p = 0.013). The molecular weight of the chitosan polymer was decreased by 75% during the electrospinning process. Uncrosslinked and genipin-crosslinked chitosan mats were cytocompatible and supported fibroblast cell proliferation for 9 days. Uncrosslinked and genipin-crosslinked membranes did not activate monocytes to produce nitric oxide (NO) in vitro in the absence of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Finally, chitosan membranes inhibited LPS-induced NO production of RAW 264.7 cells by 59-67% as compared to tissue culture plastic and collagen membrane. Improvements are needed in the tear strength of electrospun chitosan membranes for clinical application.