Olmo N, Turnay J, Herrera J I, Gavilanes J G, Lizarbe M A
Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Universidad Complutense, Madrid, Spain.
J Biomed Mater Res. 1996 Jan;30(1):77-84. doi: 10.1002/(SICI)1097-4636(199601)30:1<77::AID-JBM10>3.0.CO;2-N.
A kinetic study of the in vivo degradation of sepiolite-collagen complexes after subcutaneous implantation in rats was performed. A foreign-body reaction was the characteristic host tissue response against the implants. The resorption of the implanted materials was analyzed by measuring both the weight and the collagen persistences. This last was measured by using (14C)acetylated collagen, which was revealed to be not modified upon radioactive labeling, in terms of its ability to form a complex with sepiolite. The persistence of the implants is controllable by treatment of the collagen component with glutaraldehyde. Thus, for 1% glutaraldehyde-treated collagen complexes, 100% of persistence was observed after several months of implantation, this value decreasing to a few days for nontreated collagen samples. The collagen-sepiolite complex showed a low immunological response, almost null for 1% glutaraldehyde-treated collagen complexes, which was analyzed by measuring anti-collagen antibodies levels. Based on the performed studies, sepiolite-collagen complexes can be considered a resorbable material.
