TISSUE REGENERATING CAPACITY OF CARBODIIMIDE-CROSS-LINKED DERMAL SHEEP COLLAGEN DURING REPAIR OF THE ABDOMINAL-WALL

In future, the function of collagen-based biomaterials as temporary sc affolds for the generation of new tissue may be emphasized. In this st udy the function of dermal sheep collagen (DSC) crosslinked with carbo diimide (ENDSC) as repair material for abdominal wall defects in rats was compared with that of commercial hexamethylenediisocyanate-crossli nked HDSC. The results indicate that early after implantation both END SC and HDSC functioned well as a matrix for cellular ingrowth. However during further implantation HDSC soon degraded resulting in herniatio ns, while ENDSC showed a delay in the degradation time of at least 20 weeks. ENDSC thereby enabled collagen new-formation and functioned as a guidance for muscle overgrowth. These results are very promising con cerning the problem of the ongoing foreign body reaction with continui ng risk of implant rejection observed in clinical practice with non-de gradable materials.