Construction and In Vitro Evaluation of Collagen/Bioactive Glass Composite Membranes as a Corneal Implant

Abstract

Collagen (Col), the major component of native cornea, has been extensively employed for constructing corneal repair materials. However, inflammation impacts the process of corneal repair, even leading to transplant failure. Bioactive glass (BG) exhibits an excellent anti-inflammatory effect and immunomodulatory function in soft tissue repair. Herein, in this study, the potential of incorporating BG into collagen-based membranes for corneal repair was explored. BG was incorporated at 1, 5, and 7 wt %. The physicochemical properties of the membranes were determined, and in vitro cell-based analyses were also conducted. The results revealed that the Col-BG membranes exhibited desirable light transmission properties, mechanical properties, and good biocompatibility, which meet the requirements of a corneal substitute. Furthermore, Col membranes with 5 and 7% ratio of BG effectively induced corneal epithelial cell adhesion and migration. The Col-BG membranes displayed anti-inflammatory effects as confirmed via polymerase chain reaction and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) analysis. Among the different BG concentrations tested, the Col-BG membrane containing 5 wt % BG displayed the most favorable combination of physical and biological properties in vitro. Thus, this study described a corneal repair material and provides evidence regarding the feasibility of using Col-BG membranes for corneal repair.