A comparative in vitro and in vivo study of porcine- and bovine-derived non-cross-linked collagen membranes.

The porcine-derived non-cross-linked collagen membrane Bio-gide® (BG) and the bovine-derived non-cross-linked collagen membrane Heal-all® (HA) were compared to better understand their in vitro biophysical characteristics and in vivo degradation patterns as a reference for clinical applications. It was showed that the porosity, specific surface area, pore volume and pore diameter of BG were larger than those of HA (64.5 ± 5.2% vs. 48.6 ± 6.1%; 18.6 ± 2.8 m /g vs. 2.3 ± 0.6 m /g; 0.114 ± 0.002 cm /g vs. 0.003 ± 0.001 cm /g; 24.4 ± 3.5 nm vs. 7.3 ± 1.7 nm, respectively); the average swelling ratio of BG was higher than that of HA (412.6 ± 41.2% vs. 270.0 ± 2.7%); the tensile strength of both dry and wet HA was higher than those of BG (18.26 ± 3.27 MPa vs. 4.02 ± 1.35 MPa; 2.24 ± 0.21 MPa vs. 0.16 ± 0.02 MPa, respectively); 73% of HA remained after 72 h in collagenase solution, whereas only 8.2% of BG remained. A subcutaneous rat implantation model revealed that, at 3, 7, 14, 28, and 56 days postmembrane implantation, there were more total inflammatory cells, especially more M1 and M2 polarized macrophages and higher M2/M1 ratio in BG than in HA; in addition, the fibrous capsule around BG was also thicker than that around HA. Moreover, concentrations of dozens of cytokines including interleukin-2(IL-2), IL-7, IL-10 and so forth. in BG were higher than those in HA. It is suggested that BG and HA might be suitable for different clinical applications according to their different characteristics.