Visible light–induced cross‐linking of porcine pericardium for the improvement of endothelialization, anti‐tearing, and anticalcification properties

Population aging and the development of transcatheter aortic valve replacement boost the implantation of bioprosthetic heart valves (BHVs) in patients worldwide. However, the traditional glutaraldehyde cross-linked BHVs fail within 12-15 years mainly due to leaflet tear and calcification defects. In this study, a novel visible light-induced cross-linking of the porcine pericardium (PP) was realized by the photo-oxidation of the furfuryl-modified PP in the presence of Rose Bengal. The resulting material showed comparable collagen stability with the glutaraldehyde cross-linked PP and appropriate biomechanical properties such as tensile strength, modulus, and elongation, suggesting that this material could meet the general requirement for BHVs. Besides, this cross-linked PP showed significantly improved cytocompatibility compared with the Glut-cross-linked PP, with no cytotoxicity to L929 cells and the ability to support HUVECgrowth. Meanwhile, this material showed superior anti-tearing performance and much less calcification than the Glut-cross-linked PP in hope of reducing the risk of BHV failure. Considering these results, the visible light-induced cross-linking method proposed in this study could provide a promising way to construct a biocompatible and robust biomaterial for the fabrication of the BHV.