Comparison of the effects of Mg–6Zn and titanium on intestinal tract in vivo

To evaluate the ability of Mg–6Zn to replace titanium nails in the reconstruction of the intestinal tract in general surgery, we compared the Mg–6Zn and titanium implants with respect to their effects on rat’s intestinal tract by biochemical, radiological, pathological and immunohistochemical methods. The results indicated that Mg–6Zn implants started to degrade at the third week and disintegrate at the fourth week. No bubbles appeared, which may be associated with intestinal absorption of the Mg–6Zn implants. Pathological analyses (containing liver, kidney and cecum tissues) and biochemical measurements, including serum magnesium, creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, glutamic–pyruvic–transaminase and glutamic–oxaloacetic–transaminase proved that degradation of Mg–6Zn did not harm the important organs, which is an improvement over titanium implants. Immunohistochemical results showed that Mg–6Zn could enhance the expression of transforming growth factor-β₁. Mg–6Zn reduced the expression of tumor necrosis factor at different stages. In general, our study demonstrates that the Mg–6Zn alloy had good biocompatibility in vivo and performed better than titanium at promoting healing and reducing inflammation. It may be a promising candidate for stapler pins in intestinal reconstruction.