Affiliations: UMR 7365 CNRS-Université de Lorraine, Ingénierie Moléculaire et Physiopathologie Articulaire (IMoPA) Biopôle de l'Université de Lorraine, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy cedex, France | EA 4691, Odontology Faculty, SFR-Cap-Santé URCA, Pôle Santé, Reims, France | INSERM Unité 1121, Odontology Faculty, Louis Pasteur University, Strasbourg, France | INSERM Unité 684, Faculté de Medecine, Nancy University, Vandoeuvre-lès-Nancy, France
Note: [] Corresponding author: Prof. Patrick Menu, UMR 7365 CNRS-Université de Lorraine, Ingénierie Moléculaire et Physiopathologie Articulaire (IMoPA) Biopôle de l'Université de Lorraine, Campus biologie-santé- 9, Avenue de la Forêt de Haye - B.P. 184, 54505 Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy cedex, France. Tel.: +33 3 83 68 23 21; Fax: +33 3 83 68 23 01; E-mails: patrick.menu@univ-lorraine.fr, patrick.menu@pharma.uhp-nancy.fr
Abstract: The major challenge of vascular tissue engineering is to develop a small calibre vascular graft with a high patency rate. In native vessels, the thrombosis is prevented by the endothelium located at the luminal site of the vessel. The aim of this study was to develop a resistant endothelial lining on the inner surface of vascular graft using a polyelectrolyte multilayers (PEM) film. Umbilical arteries were de-endothelialized, coated with 3.5 bilayers of poly(styrene sulfonate) (PSS)/poly(allylamine hydrochloride) (PAH) and then cellularized with endothelial cells. The grafts were cultured for a week in static condition and preconditioned by exposure to a shear stress of at 1 Pa for three hours before implantation on the rabbit carotid site. Histological and confocal microscopy in vitro investigations showed that PEMs films improve cell adhesion and retention on the luminal surface after shear stress preconditioning. In vivo Doppler data showed that graft preconditioning is a crucial factor for graft patency. Indeed, preconditioned grafts remained over the whole experimental period, whereas unpreconditioned grafts were obstructed after only one week of implantation. These results open the route toward the development of a new generation of vascular substitutes having a long term patency.
