Tissue-Engineered Vascular Graft and Its Fabrication Approach

• US 20140379072A1
• Filed: 09/08/2014
• Published: 12/25/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 04/06/2012
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Fgbu "Nii Kompleksnykh Problem Serdechno-Sosudistykh Zabolevany Sibirskogo Otdeleniya Ramn"
• Original Assignee: Fgbu "Nii Kompleksnykh Problem Serdechno- Sosudistykh Zabolevany Sibirskogo Otdeleniya Ramn"
• Inventors: BARBARASH, Leonid S., ELGUDIN, Jacob L., SEVOSTYANOVA, Victoria V., GOLOVKIN, Alexey S.
• Application Number:
  US14/480,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20140379072A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 623/1.38
• CPC Class Codes: A61F 2/06 Blood vessels
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 2300/414 Growth factors
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/18 obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/507 for artificial blood vessels apparatus for applying cells on a blood vessel prosthesis A61F2/062
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/54 Biologically active materials, e.g. therapeutic substances A61L27/227 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/56 Porous materials, e.g. foams or sponges
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 27/58 Materials at least partially resorbable by the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61L 31/06 obtained otherwise than by reactions only involving carbon-to-carbon unsaturated bonds A61L31/041 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 67/04 Polyesters derived from hydroxycarboxylic acids, e.g. lactones C08L67/06 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: D01D 5/0007 Electro-spinning non-woven fabrics produced by electro-spinning D04H1/728
• CPC Class Codes: D10B 2331/041 derived from hydroxy-carboxylic acids, e.g. lactones
• CPC Class Codes: D10B 2401/12 biodegradable

Abstract

Tissue-engineered vascular graft is designed to be used in cardiovascular surgeries, especially in coronary artery bypass grafting and peripheral vessels reconstruction procedures. Two-phase electrospinning technique was employed to fabricate a biodegradable polymer graft composed of the porous tubular scaffold supplemented by biologically active molecules, incorporated directly into the matrix walls in order to promote regeneration process of the patient'"'"'s own vessel wall.

Claims

1. A method of producing a tissue-engineered vascular graft, the method comprising:

applying an electrospining process to fabricate biodegradable polymer scaffold structures having porous walls;

incorporating in the scaffold structures biological molecules of at least one of;

vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), fibroblast growth factor beta (b-FGF) and stromal derived factor-1alpha (SDF-1α

), or heparin molecules; and

forming the graft using the scaffold structures containing the incorporated molecules.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the biodegradable polymer comprises polycaprolactone (PCL).

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the scaffold structures comprise fibers or micro-fibers.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

incorporating the molecules during the electrospinning process of fabricating the scaffold structures.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

mixing a solution of the biodegradable polymer with a solution containing the VEGF, b-FGF, SDF-1α

or heparin molecules in phosphate-buffered saline at a ratio of about 20;

1.

6. The method of claim 4, further comprising:

using the electrospining process providing;

voltages in a range of 10-50 kV, flow rates in a range of 1-10 ml/h, and distances between capillary and collection screens in a range of 1-20 cm.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

forming the graft having an internal diameter in a range of 2-6 μ

m.

8. A tissue-engineered vascular graft comprising biodegradable polymer scaffold structures (i) having porous walls and (ii) incorporating biological molecules of at least one of:

vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), fibroblast growth factor beta (b-FGF) and stromal derived factor-1alpha (SDF-1α

), or heparin molecules.

9. The graft of claim 8, wherein the graft has a tubular form factor.

10. The graft of claim 8, wherein the scaffold structures comprise fibers or micro-fibers.

11. The graft of claim 8, wherein the biodegradable polymer comprises polycaprolactone (PCL).