Tseng Yuan-Tsan, Grace Nabil F, Aguib Heba, Sarathchandra Padmini, McCormack Ann, Ebeid Ahmed, Shehata Nairouz, Nagy Mohamed, El-Nashar Hussam, Yacoub Magdi H, Chester Adrian, Latif Najma
Heart Science Centre, Magdi Yacoub Institute, Harefield, United Kingdom.
Imperial College London, National Heart and Lung Institute, London, United Kingdom.
Front Cardiovasc Med. 2021 Dec 24;8:793898. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2021.793898. eCollection 2021.
The success of tissue-engineered heart valves rely on a balance between polymer degradation, appropriate cell repopulation, and extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition, in order for the valves to continue their vital function. However, the process of remodeling is highly dynamic and species dependent. The carbon fibers have been well used in the construction industry for their high tensile strength and flexibility and, therefore, might be relevant to support tissue-engineered hearts valve during this transition in the mechanically demanding environment of the circulation. The aim of this study was to assess the suitability of the carbon fibers to be incorporated into tissue-engineered heart valves, with respect to optimizing their cellular interaction and mechanical flexibility during valve opening and closure. The morphology and surface oxidation of the carbon fibers were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Their ability to interact with human adipose-derived stem cells (hADSCs) was assessed with respect to cell attachment and phenotypic changes. hADSCs attached and maintained their expression of stem cell markers with negligible differentiation to other lineages. Incorporation of the carbon fibers into a stand-alone tissue-engineered aortic root, comprised of jet-sprayed polycaprolactone aligned carbon fibers, had no negative effects on the opening and closure characteristics of the valve when simulated in a pulsatile bioreactor. In conclusion, the carbon fibers were found to be conducive to hADSC attachment and maintaining their phenotype. The carbon fibers were sufficiently flexible for full motion of valvular opening and closure. This study provides a proof-of-concept for the incorporation of the carbon fibers into tissue-engineered heart valves to continue their vital function during scaffold degradation.
组织工程心脏瓣膜的成功依赖于聚合物降解、适当的细胞再填充和细胞外基质（ECM）沉积之间的平衡，以使瓣膜能够继续发挥其重要功能。然而，重塑过程是高度动态的，且因物种而异。碳纤维因其高拉伸强度和柔韧性而在建筑行业中得到广泛应用，因此，在循环系统这种对机械要求较高的环境中，碳纤维可能与支持组织工程心脏瓣膜的这种转变相关。本研究的目的是评估碳纤维在组织工程心脏瓣膜中的适用性，以优化其在瓣膜开闭过程中的细胞相互作用和机械柔韧性。通过扫描电子显微镜（SEM）对碳纤维的形态和表面氧化进行了表征。评估了它们与人类脂肪来源干细胞（hADSCs）相互作用的能力，包括细胞附着和表型变化。hADSCs附着并维持其干细胞标志物的表达，向其他谱系的分化可忽略不计。将碳纤维掺入由喷射喷涂的聚己内酯排列碳纤维组成的独立组织工程主动脉根部时，在脉动生物反应器中模拟时，对瓣膜的开闭特性没有负面影响。总之，发现碳纤维有利于hADSCs附着并维持其表型。碳纤维具有足够的柔韧性，可实现瓣膜的完全开闭运动。本研究为将碳纤维掺入组织工程心脏瓣膜以在支架降解过程中继续发挥其重要功能提供了概念验证。
