To prolong the degradation time of collagen membranes, various cross-linking techniques have been developed. For cross-linking, chemicals such as formaldehyde and glutaraldehyde are added to collagen membranes, but these chemicals could adversely affect surrounding tissues. The aim of this study is to evaluate the ability of porous non-chemical cross-linking porcine-derived collagen nanofibrous membrane to enhance bone and associated tissue regeneration in one-wall intrabony defects in beagle dogs.

The second and third mandibular premolars and the first molars of 2 adult beagles were extracted bilaterally and the extraction sites were allowed to heal for 10 weeks. One-wall intrabony defects were prepared bilaterally on the mesial and distal side of the fourth mandibular premolars. Among eight defects, four defects were not covered with membrane as controls and the other four defects were covered with membrane as the experimental group. The animals were sacrificed 10 weeks after surgery.

Wound healing was generally uneventful. For all parameters evaluating bone regeneration, the experimental group showed significantly superior results compared to the control. In new bone height (NBh), the experimental group exhibited a greater mean value than the control (3.04 ± 0.23 mm/1.57 ± 0.59, P = 0.003). Also, in new bone area (NBa) and new bone volume (NBv), the experimental group showed superior results compared to the control (NBa, 34.48 ± 10.21% vs. 5.09 ± 5.76%, P = 0.014; and NBv, 28.04 ± 12.96 vs. 1.55 ± 0.57, P = 0.041). On the other hand, for parameters evaluating periodontal tissue regeneration, including junctional epithelium migration and new cementum height, there were no statistically significant differences between two groups.

Within the limitations of this study, this collagen membrane enhanced bone regeneration at one-wall intrabony defects. On the other hand, no influence of this membrane on periodontal tissue regeneration could be ascertained in this study.