Tissue-Engineered Carotid Artery Interposition Grafts Demonstrate High Primary Patency and Promote Vascular Tissue Regeneration in the Ovine Model.

Tissue-engineered vascular graft for the reconstruction of small arteries is still an unmet clinical need, despite the fact that a number of promising prototypes have entered preclinical development. Here we test Poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate)Poly(ε-caprolactone) 4-mm-diameter vascular grafts equipped with vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and stromal cell-derived factor 1α (SDF-1α) and surface coated with heparin and iloprost (PHBV/PCL[VEGF-bFGF-SDF], = 8) in a sheep carotid artery interposition model, using biostable vascular prostheses of expanded poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (ePTFE, = 5) as a control. Primary patency of PHBV/PCL[VEGF-bFGF-SDF] grafts was 62.