Biocompatibility and potential of decellularized porcine small intestine to support cellular attachment and growth

The aim of this study was to decellularize a 30 cm long segment of porcine small intestine, determine its in vivo behaviour and assess the type of immunological reaction it induces in a quantitative manner. A segment of porcine ileum up to 30 cm long, together with its attached vasculature, was decellularized via its mesenteric arcade as a single entity. The quality of the acellular scaffold was assessed histologically and using molecular tools. The host response to the scaffold was evaluated in a rodent model. Stereological techniques were incorporated into quantitative analysis of the phenotype of the macrophages infiltrating the scaffold in vivo . Lengths of ileal scaffold, together with its attached vasculature, were successfully decellularized, with no evidence of intact cells and DNA or collagen and GAGs overdegradation. Analysis of explants harvested over 2 months postimplantation revealed full‐thickness recellularization and no signs of foreign body or immune reactions. Macrophage profiling proved that between weeks 4 and 8 in vivo there was a switch from an M1 (pro‐inflammatory) to an M2 (pro‐remodelling) type of response. We show here that the decellularization process results in a biocompatible and non‐toxic matrix that upon implantation triggers cellular infiltration and angiogenesis, primarily characterized by a pro‐remodelling type of mononuclear response, without inducing foreign body reaction or fibrosis. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.