In vitro genotoxicity evaluation and metabolic study of residual glutaraldehyde in animal-derived biomaterials

Glutaraldehyde (GA) is an important additive that is mainly used in animal-derived biomaterials to improve their mechanical and antimicrobial capacities. However, GA chemical toxicity and the metabolic mechanism remain relatively unknown. Therefore, residual GA has always been a major health risk consideration for animal-derived medical devices. In this study, extracts of three bio-patches were tested via the GA determination test and mouse lymphoma assay (MLA). The results showed that dissolved GA was a potential mutagen, which could induce significant cytotoxic and mutagenic effects in mouse lymphoma cells. These toxic reactions were relieved by the S9 metabolic activation (MA) system. Furthermore, we confirmed that GA concentration decreased and glutaric acid was generated during the catalytic process. We revealed GA could be oxidized via cytochrome P450 which was the main metabolic factor of S9. We found that even though GA was possibly responsible for positive reactions of animal-derived biomaterials’ biocompatibility evaluation, it may not represent the real situation occurring in human bodies, owing to the presence of various detoxification mechanisms including the S9 system. Overall, in order to achieve a general balance between risk management and practical application, rational decisions based on comprehensive analyses must be considered.