Duygu Dortyon

Master student

Improving Endothelialization of Nanofiber Vascular Prostheses Using Surface Coating and Advanced Cell Seeding Methods

 Supervisors: Prof. Iwona Cicha (SEON, UKER), Prof. Aldo R. Boccaccini

Improved therapy of cardiovascular diseases (CVD) requires development of novel strategies and advanced solutions. One of the therapeutic approaches called bypass grafting utilizes artificial prostheses to replace the arteries affected by atherosclerosis. To improve the patency of such vascular grafts and prevent platelet adhesion, efficient endothelialization is crucial [1]. However, as the artificial grafts often lack biological cues, surface coating of the prostheses is expected to improve endothelialization. Additionally, the use of iron oxide-based magnetic nanoparticles, which possess superparamagnetic properties and have potential applications in targeted therapies, can enable cell labelling and their accumulation on the prosthesis surface [2]. This Master’s thesis explores the possibility of enhancing endothelialization of nanofibrous polyurethane prostheses by surface coating with polycatecholamines. Furthermore, different cell seeding methods (sedimentation seeding, perfusion seeding and magnetic cell seeding) will be tested and compared to understand the interactions between cells and bioadhesive coating. The effects of magnetic control of cell colonization in 2D and 3D will be investigated with the aim of improving endothelialization.

[1] Kopeć, K., Wojasiński, M., Eichler, M., Genç, H., Friedrich, R. P., Stein, R., Singh, R., Alexiou, C., Hlawaty, H., Ciach, T., & Cicha, I. (2021). Polydopamine and gelatin coating for rapid endothelialization of vascular scaffolds. Biomaterials Advances, 134, 112544. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.msec.2021.11254

[2] Cicha, I., & Alexiou, C. (2020). Cardiovascular applications of magnetic particles. Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, 518, 167428. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jmmm.2020.167428