Cell and Organ Culture Systems to Evaluate Biodegradation and Biocompatibility of Polymers

Abstract : Polymers have long been used as surgical implants. Systematic tests of polymers for biocompatibility started in 1949, when Aries implanted nylon sutures in dogs and observed the tissue reaction to the polymer and the effect of the bio-environment on the plastic. In 1945 Blum introduced tissue culture systems for the in vitro screening of cytotoxicity of polymers. The first in vitro biodegradation test was developed in the authors' laboratory. The three tests described in this paper are routinely used for the preliminary screening of surgical polymers or for candidate materials obtained commercially. The data obtained with these methods are in good correlation with in vivo implantation studies and thus provide an important tool in materials development.