Transplantation material bovine pericardium: biomechanical and immunogenic characteristics after decellularization vs. glutaraldehyde-fixing

Hülsmann J, Grün K, El Amouri S, Barth M, Hornung K, Holzfuß C, Lichtenberg A, Akhyari P. Transplantation material bovine pericardium: biomechanical and immunogenic characteristics after decellularization vs. glutaraldehyde‐fixing. Xenotransplantation 2012; 19: 286–297. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons A/S. : Background: Today, bovine pericardium (BP) is extensively investigated as a biomaterial for the generation of various bioimplants. But despite the commercial distribution, and the development of methods either to remove (decellularization) or to mask (chemical cross‐linking, for example by glutaraldehyde [GA] treatment) the xenogeneic antigen epitopes, yet questions around the immunogenic reactivity of BP remain. The aim of this study is the comparison of crucial tissue characteristics, that is, biomechanical properties, the presence of αGal epitopes, and residual DNA in acellular vs. GA‐fixed BP. Methods: Bovine pericardium was either cross‐linked with 0.6% GA or decellularized according to two common protocols using either sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and desoxycholic acid (DCA) or trypsin and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). The resulting extracellular matrix was prone to one‐dimensional tensile testing. The tissue content for αGal was evaluated by immunoblotting, and residual DNA was determined by a commercial assay. Untreated BP served as control. Results: In contrast to previous reports, we found a pronounced decrease in the elastic modulus (E‐Modulus) for common GA treatment and overall smaller values for the elastic moduli after decellularization (P