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ARS Home » Southeast Area » New Orleans, Louisiana » Southern Regional Research Center » Cotton Chemistry and Utilization Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #175422
Title: Cotton and Protein Interactions

Author
item GOHEEN, STEVEN - BATTELLE NORTHWEST
item Edwards, Judson - Vince
item RAYBURN, ALFRED - BATTELLE NORTHWEST
item GAITHER, KARI - BATTELLE NORTHWEST
item CASTRO, NATHAN - Batelle Pacific Northwest Laboratories

Submitted to: Book Chapter
Publication Type: Book / Chapter
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/1/2006
Publication Date: 10/1/2006
Citation: Goheen, S.C., Edwards, J.V., Rayburn, A., Gaither, K., Castro, N. 2006. Cotton and Protein Interactions. In Edwards, J.V., Buschle-Diller, G. and Goheen, S.C., editors. Modified Fibers with Medical and Specialty Applications. A.A. Dordrecht, The Netherlands. Springer. p. 49-65.

Interpretive Summary: An improved understanding of how wound fluid proteins and wound dressing materials such as cotton-based wound dressings interact is required in order to design improved wound dressings. Chronic wounds are a major worldwide health problem. This research is directed at strengthening the role of cotton-based textiles in the growing market of high tech wound dressings. An improvement on cotton gauze to accelerate healing in patients with bedsores and ulcers is the ultimate goal of this work. Cotton gauze can be modified to reduce the activity of a destructive enzyme found to keep chronic wounds from healing. In addition, albumin is the major protein found in wound fluid, and it binds competitively to wound dressing materials with other proteins from in the chronic wound. To assess the relative binding of albumin and wound proteases that cause destruction of healing tissue, a basic approach was employed to study the binding of both albumin and elastase to modified cotton fibers. Thus, this study is directed to understanding the implications of protein adsorption phenomena in terms of fiber-protein models that have implications for rationally designing dressings for chronic wounds. The results of this study are targeted to the consumer who benefits by improved treatment of chronic wound and increasing the market share of cotton for the farmer.

Technical Abstract: The adsorbent properties of important wound fluid proteins and cotton cellulose are reviewed. This review focuses on the adsorption of albumin to cotton-based wound dressings and some chemically modified derivatives targeted for chronic wounds. Adsorption of elastase in the presence of albumin was examined as a model to understand the interactive properties of these wound fluid components with cotton fibers. In the chronic non-healing wound, elastase appears to be over-expressed, and it digests tissue and growth factors, interfering with the normal healing process. Albumin is the most prevalent protein in wound fluid, and in highly moderately exudative wounds, it may bind significantly to the fibers of wound dressings. Thus, the relative binding properties of both elastase and albumin to wound dressing fibers are of interest in the design of more effective wound dressings. The present work examines the binding of albumin to two different derivatives of cotton, and quantifies the elastase binding to the same derivatives following exposure of albumin to the fiber surface. An HPLC adsorption technique was employed coupled with a coloimetric enzyme assay to quantify the relative binding properties of albumin and elastase to cotton. The results of wound protein binding are discussed in relation to porosity and surface chemistry interactions of cotton and wound proteins. Studies are directed to understanding the implications of protein adsorption phenomena in terms of fiber-protein models that have implications for rationally designing dressings for chronic wounds.