Articular cartilage heterografts
OwnerKevin R. Stoneinventor
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Abstract
The invention provides an article of manufacture comprising a substantially non-immunogenic articular cartilage heterograft for implantation into humans. The invention further provides a method for preparing an articular cartilage heterograft by removing at least a portion of an articular cartilage from a non-human animal to provide a heterograft; washing the heterograft in saline and alcohol; subjecting the heterograft to at least one treatment selected from the group consisting of exposure to ultraviolet radiation, immersion in alcohol, ozonation, freeze/thaw cycling, and optionally to chemical crosslinking. In accordance with the invention the heterograft has substantially the same mechanical properties as the native xenogeneic articular cartilage.
Claims6
A method of preparing an articular cartilage heterograft for implantation into a human, which comprises
- a. removing at least an intact portion of an articular cartilage from a joint of a nonhuman animal to provide a heterograft;
- b. washing the heterograft in water and alcohol;
- and
- c. digesting the heterograft with at least one glycosidase to remove surface carbohydrate moieties from the heterograft;
- whereby the heterograft has substantially the same mechanical properties as the native articular cartilage.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.