Mechanical properties of collagen fibres: a comparison of reconstituted and rat tail tendon fibres.

This study involves comparison of the mechanical properties of reconstituted collagen fibres with those of collagen fibres obtained from rat tail tendons. Reconstituted collagen fibres were cross-linked in the presence of glutaraldehyde vapour for 2 and 4 d or using a combination of severe dehydration and carbodiimide treatment. Ultimate tensile strengths for reconstituted fibres cross-linked with glutaraldehyde ranged from 50 to 66 MPa while those cross-linked by severe dehydration and carbodiimide treatment had ultimate tensile strengths between 24 and 31 MPa. Rat tail tendon fibres had tensile strengths that ranged from 33 to 39 MPa. These results indicate that high-strength collagen fibres can be reconstituted in vitro and that these fibres may be useful in repair of dermal, dental, cardiovascular and orthopaedic defects.

[1]  K. Piez,et al.  Collagen fibril formation in vitro. The role of the nonhelical terminal regions. , 1979, The Journal of biological chemistry.

[2]  G. C. Wood,et al.  The formation of fibrils from collagen solutions. 1. The effect of experimental conditions: kinetic and electron-microscope studies. , 1960, The Biochemical journal.

[3]  Z. Ráliš,et al.  Induction of tendon and ligament formation by carbon implants. , 1977, The Journal of bone and joint surgery. British volume.

[4]  M. Keech.  The formation of fibrils from collagen solutions. IV. Effect of mucopolysaccharides and nucleic acids: an electron microscope study. , 1961 .

[5]  F. Silver,et al.  Evaluation of collagen crosslinking techniques. , 1983, Biomaterials, medical devices, and artificial organs.

[6]  H. Bensusan,et al.  Fiber Formation from Solutions of Collagen. II. The Role of Tyrosyl Residues1,2 , 1960 .

[7]  J. Fessler.  Some properties of neutral-salt-soluble collagen. 1. , 1960, The Biochemical journal.

[8]  F H Silver,et al.  Viscoelastic behavior of human connective tissues: relative contribution of viscous and elastic components. , 1983, Connective tissue research.

[9]  M. Nimni,et al.  Mechanism of crosslinking of proteins by glutaraldehyde II. Reaction with monomeric and polymeric collagen. , 1982, Connective tissue research.

[10]  F. Silver,et al.  Collagen-based wound dressing: effects of hyaluronic acid and fibronectin on wound healing. , 1986, Biomaterials.

[11]  Bolton Cw,et al.  The GORE-TEX expanded polytetrafluoroethylene prosthetic ligament. An in vitro and in vivo evaluation. , 1985 .

[12]  F. Silver.  Type I collagen fibrillogenesis in vitro. Additional evidence for the assembly mechanism. , 1981, The Journal of biological chemistry.

[13]  D. Speer,et al.  Effect of tanning agent on tissue reaction to tissue implanted collagen sponge. , 1983, The Journal of surgical research.