Remodeling of the collagen fiber architecture due to compaction in small vessels under tissue engineered conditions.

Mechanical loading protocols in tissue engineering (TE) aim to improve the deposition of a properly organized collagen fiber network. In addition to collagen remodeling, these conditioning protocols can result in tissue compaction. Tissue compaction is beneficial to tissue collagen alignment, yet it may lead to a loss of functionality of the TE construct due to changes in geometry after culture.

Living heart valve and small-diameter artery substitutes--an emerging field for intellectual property development.

Cardiovascular diseases, such as heart valve dysfunction and coronary artery stenosis, are next to cancer the leading cause of death in the US. Treatments involve replacement of the heart valve or bypassing the obstructed coronary artery with a small-diameter vascular graft. The major limitation of currently used replacements is their inability to grow, adapt and repair in the patient.

The influence of endothelial cells on the ECM composition of 3D engineered cardiovascular constructs.

Tissue engineering of small diameter (<5 mm) blood vessels is a promising approach to develop viable alternatives for autologous vascular grafts. Development of a functional, adherent, shear resisting endothelial cell (EC) layer is one of the major issues limiting the successful application of these tissue engineered grafts. The goal of the present study was to create a confluent EC layer on a rectangular 3D cardiovascular construct using human venous cells and to determine the influence of this layer on the extracellular matrix composition and mechanical properties of the constructs.

Dynamic straining combined with fibrin gel cell seeding improves strength of tissue-engineered small-diameter vascular grafts.

Vascular tissue engineering represents a promising approach for the development of living small-diameter vascular grafts that can be used for replacement therapy. The culture of strong human tissue-engineered (TE) vascular grafts has required long culture times, up to several months, whether or not combined with gene therapy. This article describes the culture of strong, genetically unmodified, human TE vascular grafts in 4 weeks Small-diameter vascular grafts were engineered using a fast-degrading polyglycolic acid scaffold coated with poly-4-hydroxybutyrate combined with fibrin gel and seeded with myofibroblasts isolated from discarded saphenous veins from patients undergoing coronary bypass surgery.