Anne Zimmermann

Bachelor Studentin

Improvement of the layer adhesion of composite cardiac patches

Betreuer: Florian Ruther, Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini

This study will focus on the improvement of cardiac patches for heart tissue engineering to avoid the potential formation of scar tissue and to improve the preservation of cardiac cells after myocardial infarction. In order to meet these requirements in the best possible way, a novel composite cardiac patch is being developed which additionally matches the mechanical properties of heart tissue. This project aims to prepare porous poly(glycerol sebacate) (PGS) [1] scaffolds on the one hand and to increase the adhesion of polymer fibers on the PGS patches previously produced. The produced scaffolds will finally be analyzed regarding their surface structure, their mechanical behaviour as well as the adhesion properties of the layers.

[1] Chen, Q. Z., et al., Characterisation of a soft elastomer poly(glycerol sebacate) designed to match the mechanical properties of myocardial tissue, Biomaterials 29 (2008) 47-57.