Cellulose-Ester as Membrane Materials for Hemodialysis

Abstract

The majority of dialysis membranes are fabricated from regenerated unmodified cellulose. This standard type of cellulosic membrane is frequently under attack because of its alleged lack of biocompatibility. Recent developments, however, have proven that a chemical modification of the reactive surface groups of regenerated cellulose, the hydroxylgroups, limits the complement-activating potential of these materials and thus improves its blood-compatibility. We extended the idea of modifying cellulose for improved blood-compatibility to a series of different cellulose esters. Special focus was directed towards the question whether a variation of the type of substituent and degree of substitution could influence the blood-compatibility pattern of these materials: the analysis of blood-compatibility profiles showed a direct dependency on the type of substituent and the degree of substitution (DS). As an example, it was found that the DS, necessary for a complete reduction of complement activation, decreases with increasing chain lengths of aliphatic substituents. Optimal degrees of substitution are characteristic of the type of substituents and enable us to tailor materials specifically for optimized blood compatibility.