Key result
Microfibrous leaflet scaffolds generate functional, native-like trilayered tissue after 3 months in rats.
Why the study?
Current mechanical and bioprosthetic valves are not fully efficient, necessitating functional tissue-engineered leaflet scaffolds that mimic the native trilayered, oriented structure.
Microfibrous leaflet scaffolds implanted in vivo successfully generated functional tissue-engineered leaflet constructs with native-like trilayered structure and mechanical properties, showing promise for heart valve replacement.
Advances scaffold-based valve engineering in vivo; leaves open orthotopic large-animal validation before clinical translation.
Mechanical and bioprosthetic valves that are currently applied for replacing diseased heart valves are not fully efficient. Heart valve tissue engineering may solve the issues faced by the prosthetic valves in heart valve replacement. The leaflets of native heart valves have a trilayered structure with layer-specific orientations; thus, it is imperative to develop functional leaflet tissue constructs with a native trilayered, oriented structure. Its key solution is to develop leaflet scaffolds with a native morphology and structure. In this study, microfibrous leaflet scaffolds with a native trilayered and oriented structure were developed in an electrospinning system. The scaffolds were implanted for 3 months in rats subcutaneously to study the scaffold efficiencies in generating functional tissue-engineered leaflet constructs. These in vivo tissue-engineered leaflet constructs had a trilayered, oriented structure similar to native leaflets. The tensile properties of constructs indicated that they were able to endure the hydrodynamic load of the native heart valve. Collagen, glycosaminoglycans, and elastin─the predominant extracellular matrix components of native leaflets─were found sufficiently in the leaflet tissue constructs. The residing cells in the leaflet tissue constructs showed vimentin and α-smooth muscle actin expression, i.e., the constructs were in a growing state. Thus, the trilayered, oriented fibrous leaflet scaffolds produced in this study could be useful to develop heart valve scaffolds for successful heart valve replacements.
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Jana et al. (2021) studied Heart valve replacement. Microfibrous leaflet scaffolds with a native trilayered and oriented structure was evaluated on Generation of functional tissue-engineered leaflet constructs (morphology, structure, tensile properties, ECM components, cell expression). Microfibrous leaflet scaffolds implanted subcutaneously in rats for 3 months successfully generated functional tissue-engineered leaflet constructs with native-like trilayered structure and ECM.
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