Pharmacokinetics and biodegradation of chitosan in rats

• DOI: 10.1007/s11802-015-2573-5
• Publication Date: 2015-08-01T06:42:20Z
• Authors: Hui Li; Zhiwen Jiang; Baoqin Han; Shuyi Niu; Wen Dong; Wanshun Liu
• Keywords: Fluorescein isothiocyanate

Chitosan, an excellent biomedical material, has received a widespread in vivo application. In contrast, its metabolism and distribution once being implanted were less documented. In this study, the pharmacokinetics and biodegradation of fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) labeled and muscle implantation administrated chitosan in rats were investigated with fluorescence spectrophotometry, histological assay and gel chromatography. After implantation, chitosan was degraded gradually during its distribution to diverse organs. Among the tested organs, liver and kidney were found to be the first two highest in chitosan content, which was followed by heart, brain and spleen. Urinary excretion was believed to be the major pathway of chitosan elimination, yet 80% of chitosan administered to rats was not trackable in their urine. This indicated that the majority of chitosan was degraded in tissues. In average, the molecular weight of the degradation products of chitosan in diverse organs and urine was found to be <65 kDa. This further confirmed the in vivo degradation of chitosan. Our findings provided new evidences for the intensive and safe application of chitosan as a biomedical material.