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Approach for Fabricating Tissue Engineered Vascular Grafts with Stable Endothelialization

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Abstract

A major roadblock in the development of tissue engineered vascular grafts (TEVGs) is achieving construct endothelialization that is stable under physiological stresses. The aim of the current study was to validate an approach for generating a mechanically stable layer of endothelial cells (ECs) in the lumen of TEVGs. To accomplish this goal, a unique method was developed to fabricate a thin EC layer using poly(ethylene glycol) diacrylate (PEGDA) as an intercellular “cementing” agent. This EC layer was subsequently bonded to the lumen of a tubular scaffold to generate a bi-layered construct. The viability of bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) through the “cementing” process was assessed. “Cemented” EC layer expression of desired phenotypic markers (AcLDL uptake, VE-cadherin, eNOS, PECAM-1) as well as of injury-associated markers (E-selectin, SM22α) was also examined. These studies indicated that the “cementing” process allowed ECs to maintain high viability and expression of mature EC markers while not significantly stimulating primary injury pathways. Finally, the stability of the “cemented” EC layers under abrupt application of high shear pulsatile flow (~11 dyn/cm2, P avg ~ 95 mmHg, ΔP ~ 20 mmHg) was evaluated and compared to that of conventionally “seeded” EC layers. Whereas the “cemented” ECs remained fully intact following 48 h of pulsatile flow, the “seeded” EC layers delaminated after less than 1 h of flow. Furthermore, the ability to extend this approach to degradable PEGDA “cements” permissive of cell elongation was demonstrated. Combined, these results validate an approach for fabricating bi-layered TEVGs with stable endothelialization.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge funding from the Texas Engineering Experimental Station. We also acknowledge the lab of Victor Ugaz, PhD for use of their viscometer.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Texas A&M University, 200 Jack E Brown Bldg; 3122 TAMU, College Station, TX, 77843-3122, USA

    Viviana Guiza-Arguello, Dany J. Munoz-Pinto, Rebecca E. McMahon, Anabel Morales, Lynnette Cubero-Ponce & Mariah S. Hahn

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA

    Mariah S. Hahn

  3. Materials Science and Engineering Program, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, USA

    Andrea Carolina Jimenez-Vergara, Silvia Becerra-Bayona & Mariah S. Hahn

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  1. Andrea Carolina Jimenez-Vergara
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  2. Viviana Guiza-Arguello
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  3. Silvia Becerra-Bayona
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  4. Dany J. Munoz-Pinto
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  7. Lynnette Cubero-Ponce
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  8. Mariah S. Hahn
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Correspondence to Mariah S. Hahn.

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Associate Editor Kyriacos A. Athanasiou oversaw the review of this article.

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Jimenez-Vergara, A.C., Guiza-Arguello, V., Becerra-Bayona, S. et al. Approach for Fabricating Tissue Engineered Vascular Grafts with Stable Endothelialization. Ann Biomed Eng 38, 2885–2895 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-010-0049-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10439-010-0049-8

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