Alligator carcasses yield biomed bounty

NEW ORLEANS, Aug 01, 2005 (United Press International via COMTEX) -- Alligators, already contributions to food and fashion, reportedly might soon start giving of themselves to public health and cosmetics as well.

Louisiana State University researchers are focusing on alligator carcasses as prime sources of collagen, the main protein of connective tissue, which also is responsible for our skin's elasticity, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported Monday.

Researchers said collagen could be used for such diverse products as skin creams; treatments for cancer, high blood pressure and incontinence; artificial bone and cartilage; and skin grafts for burn victims.

"Collagen is the biggest building block of our bodies. It's in all our parts," Mark Schexnayder, a marine biologist with the LSU AgCenter, told the newspaper.

Although Schexnayder designed the collagen-removal process for fish, he told the Times-Picayune it was easy to adapt it for alligators. The process grinds the remnants and puts them through a series of chemical solutions.

Schexnayder said collagen's potential medical uses include being used as a foundation for skin grafts and bone construction and, eventually, possibly even as a potent anti-tumor weapon.