DEVELOPMENT OF A PERICARDIAL ACELLULAR MATRIX BIOMATERIAL - BIOCHEMICAL AND MECHANICAL EFFECTS OF CELL EXTRACTION

There is evidence to suggest that the cellular components of homograft s and bioprosthetic xenografts may contribute to calcification or immu nogenic reactions. A four-step detergent and enzymatic extraction proc ess has been developed to remove cellular components from bovine peric ardial tissue. The process results in an acellular matrix material con sisting primarily of elastin, insoluble collagen, and tightly bound gl ycosaminoglycans. Light and electron microscopy confirmed that nearly all cellular constituents are removed without ultrastructural evidence of damage to fibrous components. Collagen denaturation temperatures r emained unaltered. Biochemical analysis confirmed the retention of col lagen and elastin and some differential extraction of glycosaminoglyca ns. Low strain rate fracture testing and high strain rate viscoelastic characterization showed that, with the exception of slightly increase d stress relaxation, the mechanical properties of the fresh tissue wer e preserved in the pericardial acellular matrix. Crosslinking of the m aterial in glutaraldehyde or poly(glycidyl ether) produced mechanical changes consistent with the same treatments of fresh tissue. The peric ardial acellular matrix is a promising approach to the production of b iomaterials for heart valve or cardiovascular patching applications. ( C) 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.