Tranexamic acid--an alternative to aprotinin in fibrin-based cardiovascular tissue engineering.

Recent clinical trials have led to the worldwide suspension of aprotinin, the most commonly used antifibrinolytic agent in fibrin-based tissue engineering. For future clinical applications of fibrin-based scaffolds, a suitable, alternative fibrinolysis inhibitor must be identified. The present study aimed to evaluate tranexamic acid (trans-4-aminomethyl-cyclohexane-1-carboxylic acid [t-AMCA]) as an alternative fibrinolysis inhibitor to aprotinin for cardiovascular tissue engineering applications.