Injectable extracellular matrix hydrogel developed using porcine articular cartilage

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Drug Delivery Systems
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Developing effective drug delivery systems for sustained therapeutic release is crucial in modern medicine.
• Biocompatible materials are sought after for minimizing adverse reactions and enhancing therapeutic efficacy.
• Porcine articular cartilage presents a potential source for novel biomaterials.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and characterize a novel drug delivery system using porcine articular cartilage powder (PCP).
• To evaluate the sustained release kinetics of protein drugs from the developed PCP hydrogel in vivo.
• To assess the biocompatibility and inflammatory response of the PCP hydrogel.

Main Methods:

• Preparation of porcine articular cartilage powder (PCP) and its characterization.
• Entrapment of bovine serum albumin-fluorescein isothiocyanate (BSA-FITC) within the PCP suspension.
• In vivo subcutaneous injection of BSA-FITC-loaded PCP into rats.
• Monitoring of BSA-FITC release using real-time in vivo molecular imaging and analysis of rat plasma.

Main Results:

• PCP suspension effectively entrapped BSA-FITC and formed a 3D hydrogel structure upon subcutaneous injection.
• Sustained release of BSA-FITC was observed in vivo for up to 20 days.
• The PCP hydrogel exhibited a minimal inflammatory response in the animal model.

Conclusions:

• The developed porcine articular cartilage powder (PCP) hydrogel serves as a promising, minimally invasive depot for sustained protein drug delivery.
• The PCP hydrogel demonstrates good biocompatibility and controlled release capabilities.
• This novel biomaterial holds potential for therapeutic applications requiring long-term drug release.