Sentry Bioconvertible Inferior Vena Cava Filter: Study of Stages of Incorporation in an Experimental Ovine Model.

The Sentry inferior vena cava (IVC) filter is designed to provide temporary protection from pulmonary embolism (PE) and then bioconvert to become incorporated in the vessel wall, leaving a patent IVC lumen. To evaluate the performance and stages of incorporation of the Sentry IVC filter in an ovine model. Twenty-four bioconvertible devices and 1 control retrievable filter were implanted in the infrarenal IVC of 25 sheep, with extensive daily monitoring and intensive imaging.

The effect of physiological cyclic stretch on the cell morphology, cell orientation and protein expression of endothelial cells.

In vivo, endothelial cells are constantly exposed to pulsatile shear and tensile stresses. The main aim of this study was to design and build a physiological simulator, which reproduced homogenous strain profiles of the tensile strain experienced in vivo, and to investigate the effect of this cyclic tensile strain on the cell morphology, cell orientation and protein expression of endothelial cells. The biological response of human umbilical vein endothelial cells to a uniaxial cyclic stretch, in this newly developed simulator, was examined experimentally using immunohistostaining and confocal imaging and it was found that the cells elongated and oriented at 58.