Cytocompatibility of Novel Algae-PLA Membranes For Guided Bone Regeneration At The Level of Types I, III And V Collagen Expression

Statement of the problem: In recent years, the development of innovative and increasingly optimized barrier membranes has focused on marine algae, which as a biopolymer can form a membrane composite together with polylactic acid, thus a combination could show numerous advantages such as antioxidant, antitumor, antibacterial, antiviral as well as antiallergic properties. Furthermore, algae can be produced in an ecologically sustainable way and offer an alternative for patients who refuse treatment with bovine or porcine derived membranes due to ethical or religious reasons. Objective: In this study, four different algal membranes were evaluated for their cytocompatibility with cultured human fibroblasts and osteoblasts. Materials & Methods: Mem-Lok® (Collagen Matrix, New Jersey, USA) as a resorbable collagen membrane and ArgonautTM (Botiss Biomaterials, Zossen, Germany) as a native pericardium GBR/GTR membrane served as reference membranes (RMs). As the negative control cells incubated with normal culture medium only were used. In addition to the cell viability and proliferation assays water soluble tetrazolium (WST), MTT and BrdU, a real time semiquantitative real time PCR (RT-PCR) was developed to investigate in vitro cytocompatibility at the level of types I, III and V collagen expression. A sandblasted- large grid-acid ached titanium surface (Dentcon® Dental Implant Systems, Ankara, Turkey) served as a positive inactive control group for osteoblastic cytocompatibility. Results: For human osteoblasts, the algal membranes showed very good proliferation levels in WST-1, MTT as well as BrdU, indicating cytocompatibility. Examination of the expression behavior of type I, type III, and type V collagen genes showed no evaluable results. However, the RT-PCR should be repeated with the incorporated optimizations to be able to make a statement regarding the success of bone, skin, and connective tissue regeneration after a possible application of the membrane in maxillofacial injury treatment. Conclusion: The investigated collagen types are essential for a proper healing of defects in both soft and bone tissue, as they have fundamental functions such as stability and structural integrity of the tissues.