Technical Problem
Current synthetic small-diameter tissue engineered vascular grafts face challenges such as thrombogenicity, decreased elasticity, aneurysmal failure, calcification, and intimal hyperplasia, limiting their clinical effectiveness for pediatric congenital cardiovascular defects, coronary artery disease, and peripheral artery disease, while autologous tissue grafts are inconvenient and limited by availability.
JHU Solution
Development of non-cellularized and cellularized vascular grafts comprising a tubular scaffold with dehydrated or hydrated hydrogel nanofibers and internal polymer alignment, and a bioreactor system for perfusion to create microvascular structures that mimic native vascular tissue, allowing for controlled cellularization and mechanical properties matching native vessels.
Benefit
JHU’s novel vascular grafts demonstrate improved mechanical properties and biocompatibility, enabling effective integration and growth with the patient, reducing thrombogenicity and long-term complications, and providing a viable alternative to synthetic grafts.
Stage of Development
Prototypes have been tested and characterized.
Data Availability
Data available upon request.
Publication
Elliott MB, Matsushita H, Shen J, Yi J, Inoue T, Brady T, Santhanam L, Mao HQ, Hibino N, Gerecht S. Off-the-shelf, heparinized small diameter vascular graft limits acute thrombogenicity in a porcine model. Acta Biomater. 2022 Oct 1; 151:134–47. doi: 10.1016/j.actbio.2022.07.061. PMID: 35933100
Pending U.S patent 17/766,569 Improved mechanical properties of implantable vascular grafts
