Characterization of Decellularized Human Pericardium for Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Applications

Abstract

Background Pericardium tissue allograft can be used for surgical repair in several procedures. One of the tissue engineering strategies is the process of decellularization. This process decreases immunogenic response, but it may modify the natural extracellular matrix composition and behavior. Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of cell removal, maintenance of extracellular matrix properties and mechanical integrity of decellularized human pericardium using a low concentration solution of sodium dodecyl sulfate. Methods Decellularization was performed with sodium dodecyl sulfate and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid. Histological analysis, DNA quantification, evaluation of glycosaminoglycans and collagen were performed. Biomechanical assay was performed using tensile test to compare the decellularization effects on tissue properties of tensile strength, elongation and elastic modulus. P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results There was reduction in visible nuclei present in pericardium tissue after decellularization, but it retained collagen and elastin bundles similar to fresh pericardium. The DNA contents of the decellularized pericardium were significantly reduced to less than 511.23 ± 120.4 ng per mg of dry weight (p < 0.001). The biomechanical assay showed no significant difference for fresh or decellularized tissue. Conclusion The decellularization process reduces cell content as well as extracellular matrix components without changing its biomechanical properties.

Influence of inflammation and cardiac hypertrophy on mechanical properties of human pericardium

“…15 Therefore glutaraldehyde (GA) fixation or decellularization are often used to eliminate cellular components. 18,21,23,30 Whereas GA-fixation seems to increase the strain at fracture of human pericardium decellularization showed no significant changing in mechanical properties. 18,19 To minimize bias caused by tissue preparation only native pericardium was used for our tensile tests.…”

“…Based on previous literature a pericardium thickness of 0.5 mm was used to calculate the cross area of our samples (A [mm 2 ] = sample width [mm] 3 pericardium thickness [mm]). 9,[23][24][25] Afterwards, an estimated ultimate tensile strength (UTS) was calculated (UTS [MPa] = load at fracture [N]/calculated cross area [mm 2 ]). A median UTS was calculated for comparison with previous reported investigations.…”

“…Previous studies usually focused on UTS, strain at fracture and elastic modulus. 15,[17][18][19][20][21]23 UTS can be calculated as load at fracture divided by the cross-section area of the tissue. 17 In contrast, the calculation of elastic modulus needs to be discussed in detail.…”

Progress in cardiovascular bioprinting

“…The balance between cell removal and ECM preservation, efficient recellularization with new cells of dECM for obtaining homogenous cell distribution are to be optimized to use for bioprinting applications 72‐75 . These concerns include notable scaffold elicited immunogenicity due to the presence of extraneous proteins and sugars, and toxicity due to decellularization chemicals are to be addressed 76‐81 …”

A state of the “heart”: application of bioengineered materials for cardiac surgery

“…The study presented by Wollmann et al promotes the approach of human pericardium decellularization using a reduced quantity of detergent for application as a cardiovascular patch [14].…”