Comparative study of hydrophobically modified gelatin-based sealant with commercially available sealants

Air leakage is one of the major complications related to pulmonary surgeries. To reduce this complication, we developed a decyl group (C10)-modified Alaska pollock gelatin (ApGltn) (C10-ApGltn) sealant and evaluated its practical performance against commercially available sealants, Beriplast® and DuraSeal®. C10-ApGltn was synthesized by reductive amination of the amino groups in ApGltn with decanal. C10-ApGltn was crosslinked with a poly(ethylene glycol)-based crosslinker to form a tissue sealant. The crosslinking time of the C10-ApGltn sealant was fast enough for curing on tissue and application as a spray system. Although the percent swelling of C10-ApGltn and DuraSeal was significantly greater than Beriplast, C10-ApGltn and DuraSeal exhibited excellent tissue sealing properties on pleura tissue under a long-term moist condition. Additionally, C10-ApGltn and DuraSeal did not cause severe inflammatory responses in a rat subcutaneous example. Therefore, C10-ApGltn sealant had comparable tissue sealing properties to DuraSeal under a moist condition, indicating the potential of C10-ApGltn sealant for pulmonary surgeries.