176
Bacterial Cellulose
proven.biocompatibility.provide.an.excellent.basis..This.chapter.assembles.current.knowledge.in.the.research,.development,.and.application.of.
BNC. implants. regarding. cardiovascular. and. joint. diseases.. The. topics.
include.the.design.of.flat.inlays.for.cartilage.repair.and.tubular.vascular.grafts..Shaping,.structure.control,.and.composite.formation.directly.
during. biosynthesis. will. be. discussed. in. detail.. The. comprehensive.
characterization.of.the.implants,.including.interaction.with.living.cells.
and.animal.studies,.are.presented.
Introduction
The. natural. origin. and. hierarchical. three-dimensional. (3D). nanofiber. network.structure.of.bacterial.nanocellulose.(BNC),.the.unique.state.of.a.highly.
form-stable.and.nondegradable.hydrogel.(at.least.in.mammalians),.together.
with. good. mechanical. properties. and. easy. handling. turn. this. special.
. cellulose.type.into.an.exceptional.polymer.for.applications.in.medicine,.cosmetics,. pharmaceutics,. and. cell. cultivation.. Particularly. for. use. as. medical.
implants,.the.high.purity.of.BNC,.a.water.content.up.to.99%,.and.the.analogy. .
of.its.network.architecture.to.that.of.the.extracellular.collagen.matrix.of.the.
human.body.are.exciting.features..Furthermore,.the.work.of.recent.years.has.
highlighted.that.BNC.fulfills.the.general.requirements.of.an.innovative.biomaterial,. including. biocompatibility,. bioactivity,. porosity,. stability,. sterilizability,.and.excellent.surgical.handling.
The. biotechnological. production. not. only. allows. control. of. the. network.
structure,. but. also. above. all,. the. 3D. shaping. and. surface. design. of. BNC.
implants.. In. postprocessing. steps,. a. partial. or. total. drying. of. the. implants.
in.a.vacuum,.by.heating.or.hot.pressing,.but.also.by.freeze-drying.or.solvent.
exchange,.can.be.realized.effectively..In.addition,.specific.perforation.of.the.
. material. by. channels. with. diameters. up. to. 300. μm. can. be. reliably. carried.
out..Larger.diameters.are.not.required.for.cell.migration,.but.can.be.realized..
By. combining. BNC. with. other. polymers. or. inorganic. compounds. (such. as.
hydroxy. apatite)—during. biosynthesis. or. after. treatment—nanocomposites.
are.formed.or.material.surfaces.can.be.coated.with.BNC..In.addition,.metals.
and.metal.oxides.can.be.easily.precipitated.on.the.BNC.nanofiber.network.
and.active.agents.of.various.kinds,.such.as.pharmaceuticals.and.dyes,.can.be.
incorporated.reversibly.or.irreversibly.
In. this. chapter. the. suitability. of. BNC. as. a. biomaterial. will. be. presented.
in. detail.. This. should. be. of. interest. to. readers. from. the. polymer. sciences.
and. their. applications,. medicine,. pharmaceutics,. galenics,. and. cosmetics..
Examples.of.flat.BNC.implants.for.cartilage.repair.and.tubular.BNC.blood.
vessel.grafts.are.described.
Bacterial Cellulose
proven.biocompatibility.provide.an.excellent.basis..This.chapter.assembles.current.knowledge.in.the.research,.development,.and.application.of.
BNC. implants. regarding. cardiovascular. and. joint. diseases.. The. topics.
include.the.design.of.flat.inlays.for.cartilage.repair.and.tubular.vascular.grafts..Shaping,.structure.control,.and.composite.formation.directly.
during. biosynthesis. will. be. discussed. in. detail.. The. comprehensive.
characterization.of.the.implants,.including.interaction.with.living.cells.
and.animal.studies,.are.presented.
Introduction
The. natural. origin. and. hierarchical. three-dimensional. (3D). nanofiber. network.structure.of.bacterial.nanocellulose.(BNC),.the.unique.state.of.a.highly.
form-stable.and.nondegradable.hydrogel.(at.least.in.mammalians),.together.
with. good. mechanical. properties. and. easy. handling. turn. this. special.
. cellulose.type.into.an.exceptional.polymer.for.applications.in.medicine,.cosmetics,. pharmaceutics,. and. cell. cultivation.. Particularly. for. use. as. medical.
implants,.the.high.purity.of.BNC,.a.water.content.up.to.99%,.and.the.analogy. .
of.its.network.architecture.to.that.of.the.extracellular.collagen.matrix.of.the.
human.body.are.exciting.features..Furthermore,.the.work.of.recent.years.has.
highlighted.that.BNC.fulfills.the.general.requirements.of.an.innovative.biomaterial,. including. biocompatibility,. bioactivity,. porosity,. stability,. sterilizability,.and.excellent.surgical.handling.
The. biotechnological. production. not. only. allows. control. of. the. network.
structure,. but. also. above. all,. the. 3D. shaping. and. surface. design. of. BNC.
implants.. In. postprocessing. steps,. a. partial. or. total. drying. of. the. implants.
in.a.vacuum,.by.heating.or.hot.pressing,.but.also.by.freeze-drying.or.solvent.
exchange,.can.be.realized.effectively..In.addition,.specific.perforation.of.the.
. material. by. channels. with. diameters. up. to. 300. μm. can. be. reliably. carried.
out..Larger.diameters.are.not.required.for.cell.migration,.but.can.be.realized..
By. combining. BNC. with. other. polymers. or. inorganic. compounds. (such. as.
hydroxy. apatite)—during. biosynthesis. or. after. treatment—nanocomposites.
are.formed.or.material.surfaces.can.be.coated.with.BNC..In.addition,.metals.
and.metal.oxides.can.be.easily.precipitated.on.the.BNC.nanofiber.network.
and.active.agents.of.various.kinds,.such.as.pharmaceuticals.and.dyes,.can.be.
incorporated.reversibly.or.irreversibly.
In. this. chapter. the. suitability. of. BNC. as. a. biomaterial. will. be. presented.
in. detail.. This. should. be. of. interest. to. readers. from. the. polymer. sciences.
and. their. applications,. medicine,. pharmaceutics,. galenics,. and. cosmetics..
Examples.of.flat.BNC.implants.for.cartilage.repair.and.tubular.BNC.blood.
vessel.grafts.are.described.