Characterization of the biological effect of fish fibrin glue in experiments on rats: Immunological and coagulation studies

Abstract

Fibrin glues (FG) of human or bovine origin are widely used for haemostasis and wound healing. In addition FGs are studied in many biomedical areas like cell therapy or tissue engineering. As any mammalian plasma products FG-s pose risk of transmission of bacteria, viruses, or prions and may compromise patient homeostasis. In this study, we examined coagulation parameters and immunological status of rats treated with salmon-derived FG. We evaluated the changes in thrombin time, prothrombin activity, and presence of antibodies on 46 Wistar rats. This study shows that salmon-derived FG, injected intraperitoneally, does not cause coagulation disturbances in the peripheral blood. After a first challenge with salmon-derived FG there were low but detectable amounts of antibodies revealed by ELISA and immunoblot. After a second administration there was substantial elevation of antibodies to FG components and other copurifying plasma proteins. Antibody reactivity to human Factor Va, revealed in three animals, was not associated with FG application. Taken together, blood immunological and coagulation parameters support the suitability of salmon-derived FG in the development of fibrin sealants for medical use. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2010