Abstract
The present in vitro study was conducted using polyelectrolyte complexes (PECs) as drug delivery system (DDS) materials for various cytokines, which are used to actively facilitate tissue regeneration, in order to determine their potentials as macromolecular DDS materials for the regeneration of periodontal ligament tissue.
By mixing 2 polycations and 3 polyanions, a total of 6 PECs were prepared, and each PEC was coated onto several tissue culture dishes. Human periodontal ligament fibroblast (HPLF) in D-MEM containing 10% FBS was cultured, and cell adhesion was assessed 4 and 8 hours after the start of culturing; cell proliferation was determined 2, 4 and 6 days after the start of culturing by counting the number of viable cells; and type I collagen synthesis was quantified 4 days after the start of culture test by immunostaining. The results were as follows:
With one PEC (Soluble DAC 50-κ-carrageenan), clear signs of suppressed cell adhesion and proliferation were seen, but with the other PECs, relatively favorable results were obtained. Collagen synthesis was favorable with insoluble DAC 50-S-chitin 140 and with the other PECs.
These findings suggest that PECs are macromolecular complexes with a high affinity towards HPLF and can be used as macromolecular DDS materials for various cytokines.
