Silicon-containing biodegradable material for anti-inflammatory therapy

1. A method for preventing and/or treating a disease associated with increased interleukin-1β and/or interleukin-6 and/or interleukin-8 activity and/or disease in which a reduction in the activity of interleukin-1β and/or interleukin-6 and/or interleukin-8 is beneficial for the healing process,

said method comprising administering to a subject in need thereof a therapeutically effective amount of a silicon-containing, biodegradable material,

wherein the silicon-containing, biodegradable material is a polyhydroxysilicic acid ethyl ester compound,

with the proviso that wound defects, comprising chronic diabetic-neuropathic ulcer, chronic leg ulcer, bedsores, secondary-healing infected wounds, non-irritating, primary-healing wounds, ablative lacerations and/or abrasions, are excluded from said disease that can be prevented and/or treated with said material,

wherein the polyhydroxysilicic acid ethyl ester compound has a chemical formula H[OSi 8 O 12 (OH) x (OC 2 H 5 ) 6-x ] n OH, wherein x is 2 to 5 and n>1;

wherein said disease is selected from the group consisting of: acute or chronic inflammations of the skin, psoriasis, skin allergies, parasitic skin infection, atopic dermatitis, and pemphigus vulgaris; and

wherein the therapeutically effective amount of the silicon-containing-biodegradable material is in total between 0.001 and 100 mg/kg body weight per day and is administered as a single dose or in multiple doses.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the material is in the form of a fibre, a fibre matrix, powder, liquid formulation, monolith and/or coating.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein the silicon-containing, biodegradable material is capable of being produced by:

a) at least one hydrolysis-condensation reaction of tetraethoxysilane

b) evaporation for producing a single-phase solution optionally with simultaneous gentle mixing of reaction system;

c) cooling of the single-phase solution;

d) maturation for producing silica sol material; and

e) drawing of threads from said silica sol material to generate a fibre or a fibre matrix and/or

drying, optionally spray drying or freeze-drying of said silica sol material to generate a powder and optionally dissolving said powder in a solvent to generate a liquid formulation and/or

coating said silica sol material on an object that is to be coated with said material, and/or casting said silica sol material in a mould to generate a monolith.

4. The method according to claim 3 , wherein the tetraethoxysilane is acid-catalysed in a) at an initial pH from 0 to ≤7, in the presence of a water-soluble solvent, at a temperature from 0° C. to 80° C. and in b), a single-phase solution is evaporated to a viscosity in a range from 0.5 to 2 Pa s at a shear rate of 10 s−1 at 4° C.

5. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the acid catalysis in a) is carried out with aqueous solution of nitric acid in a molar ratio to the silicon compound in a range 1:1.7 to 1:1.9.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said disease is neurodermatitis, dermatomyositis and/or pemphigus vulgaris.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the material is in the form of a fibre.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the material is in the form of a fibre matrix.

9. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the water-soluble solvent is ethanol.

10. The method according to claim 4 , wherein the acid catalysis in a) is carried out with aqueous solution of nitric acid in a molar ratio to the silicon compound in a range from 1:1.7 to 1:1.8.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the therapeutically effective amount of the silicon-containing-biodegradable material is in total between 0.01 and 25 mg/kg body weight per day and is administered as a single dose or in multiple doses.

12. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the therapeutically effective amount of the silicon-containing-biodegradable material is in total between 0.1 and 5 mg/kg body weight per day and is administered as a single dose or in multiple doses.