Conjugation with RGD Peptides and Incorporation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Are Equally Efficient for Biofunctionalization of Tissue-Engineered Vascular Grafts.

The blend of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate--3-hydroxyvalerate) (PHBV) and poly(ε-caprolactone) (PCL) has recently been considered promising for vascular tissue engineering. However, it was shown that PHBV/PCL grafts require biofunctionalization to achieve high primary patency rate. Here we compared immobilization of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid (RGD)-containing peptides and the incorporation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) as two widely established biofunctionalization approaches.

Apoptosis-mediated endothelial toxicity but not direct calcification or functional changes in anti-calcification proteins defines pathogenic effects of calcium phosphate bions.

Calcium phosphate bions (CPB) are biomimetic mineralo-organic nanoparticles which represent a physiological mechanism regulating the function, transport and disposal of calcium and phosphorus in the human body. We hypothesised that CPB may be pathogenic entities and even a cause of cardiovascular calcification. Here we revealed that CPB isolated from calcified atherosclerotic plaques and artificially synthesised CPB are morphologically and chemically indistinguishable entities.