Long-Term Functional Efficacy of a Novel Electrospun Poly(Glycerol Sebacate)-Based Arterial Graft in Mice.

Many surgical interventions for cardiovascular disease are limited by the availability of autologous vessels or suboptimal performance of prosthetic materials. Tissue engineered vascular grafts show significant promise, but have yet to achieve clinical efficacy in small caliber (<5 mm) arterial applications. We previously designed cell-free elastomeric grafts containing solvent casted, particulate leached poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) that degraded rapidly and promoted neoartery development in a rat model over 3 months.

Highly elastic and suturable electrospun poly(glycerol sebacate) fibrous scaffolds.

Poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) is a thermally-crosslinked elastomer suitable for tissue regeneration due to its elasticity, degradability, and pro-regenerative inflammatory response. Pores in PGS scaffolds are typically introduced by porogen leaching, which compromises strength. Methods for producing fibrous PGS scaffolds are very limited.

Non-invasive assessment of elastic modulus of arterial constructs during cell culture using ultrasound elasticity imaging.

Mechanical strength is a key design factor in tissue engineering of arteries. Most existing techniques assess the mechanical property of arterial constructs destructively, leading to sacrifice of a large number of animals. We propose an ultrasound-based non-invasive technique for the assessment of the mechanical strength of engineered arterial constructs.

Fast-degrading elastomer enables rapid remodeling of a cell-free synthetic graft into a neoartery.

Host remodeling is important for the success of medical implants, including vascular substitutes. Synthetic and tissue-engineered grafts have yet to show clinical effectiveness in arteries smaller than 5 mm in diameter. We designed cell-free biodegradable elastomeric grafts that degrade rapidly to yield neoarteries nearly free of foreign materials 3 months after interposition grafting in rat abdominal aorta.

A new paradigm in the treatment of kerions: treat the inflammation.

Kerions result from a massive delayed-type hypersensitivity reaction to a dermatophyte. Treatment traditionally has been directed primarily toward the dermatophyte. The authors propose, however, that inflammation should be the initial target oftreatment.

Adrenal extracellular matrix scaffolds support adrenocortical cell proliferation and function in vitro.

Transplantation of functional adrenal cortex cells could reduce morbidity and increase the quality of life of patients with adrenal insufficiency. Our aim was to determine whether adrenal extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffolds promote adrenocortical cell endocrine function and proliferation in vitro. We seeded decellularized porcine adrenal ECM with primary human fetal adrenocortical (HFA) cells.

Screening for cobalamin deficiency in geriatric outpatients: prevalence and influence of synthetic cobalamin intake.

Objectives: To describe the prevalence of cobalamin (Cbl) deficiency in older adult outpatients and to determine whether regular intake of a synthetic source of cobalamin confers protection against Cbl deficiency.

Design: Cross-sectional study.

Setting: Two university-affiliated geriatric medicine outpatient clinics.